Two more children from Madhya Pradesh, who were undergoing treatment at a Nagpur hospital after consuming a contaminated cough syrup, succumbed to their deaths on Wednesday, taking the death toll in the tragedy to 22.
Five-year-old Vishal died on Wednesday evening, and Mayank Suryavanshi, aged 4, succumbed late at night. Both of them hailed from Parasia town in Chhindwara.
Scores of children from Chhindwara and Betul districts have been admitted to hospitals over the last few weeks due to kidney infections, allegedly after taking the Coldrif syrup, the samples of which were found to have contained diethylene glycol, a poisonous substance.
According to reports, several children are still undergoing treatment, and five of them are in critical condition.
The tragic deaths of children have triggered a national health alert, with several states banning the sale and distribution of this cough syrup. The Tamil Nadu Drugs Controller have cancelled the company's manufacturing licence, while Kerala has banned the distribution of all medicines manufactured by Sresan Pharmaceuticals.
A Special Investigation Team (SIT) formed by the Madhya Pradesh government has arrested Ranganathan Govindan, owner of Sresan Pharmaceuticals, from Chennai. The Kancheepuram-based firm manufactures the Coldrif syrup.
Ranganathan, who was arrested in a midnight operation, will be brought to Chhindwara after the police obtain a transit remand from a Chennai court.
The Madhya Pradesh government has suspended two drug inspectors and a deputy director of the Food and Drug Administration. The state’s drug controller has also been transferred.
The Coldrif syrup was usually prescribed to children to treat symptoms such as a runny nose, cough, sneezing, sore throat, and fever. However, the lab tests revealed dangerously high levels of DEG and other banned chemical combinations, including Paracetamol, Chlorpheniramine, and Phenylephrine, which lack warning labels and pose serious health risks.