New Delhi: Earlier this month, the Indian government banned around 156 combinations of medicines that are often used as painkillers, multivitamins and antibiotics commonly used for treating fever and cold. Following this, India’s drug regulator tested over 50 medicine, including calcium and vitamin D3 supplements, anti-diabetes pills and high blood pressure drugs. In the latest monthly report by the Central Drugs Standards Control Organisation (CDSCO), 53 drugs have been declared as “Not of Standard Quality (NSQ) Alert.” Warnings have been issued by the NSQ, after doing random monthly sampling conducted by the state drug officers.
Drugs that failed the test
According to the report, drugs including Vitamin C and D3 tablets Shelcal, Vitamin B complex and Paracetamol tablets IP 500 mg, vitamin C soft gels antacid Pan-D, anti-diabetic drug Glimepiride, high blood pressure drug Telmisartan and other drugs including 53 top-selling drugs that failed to pass the quality check test conducted by the drug regulator.
These drugs are manufactured by Hetero Drugs, Alkem Laboratories, Hindustan Antibiotics Limited (HAL), Karnataka Antibiotics & Pharmaceuticals Ltd, Meg Lifesciences, Pure & Cure Healthcare and others. Apart from this, other drugs that have failed the quality check test include a commonly used drug for treating stomach problems or infections, Metronidazole, manufactured by PSU Hindustan Antibiotic Limited (HAL). On the other hand, Shelcal distributed by Torrent Pharmaceuticals and produced by Uttarakhand-based Pure & Cure Healthcare also failed the test.
Paracetamol tablets from Karnataka Antibiotics & Pharmaceuticals Ltd have also failed the quality check criteria. Another famous commonly used medicine, Pan D and antibiotics Clavam 625 have been found spurious. A Kolkata drug-testing lab has deemed Alkem Health Science’s tested these drugs as well the same lab also identified Hyderabad-based Hetero’s Cepodem XP 50 Dry Suspension, mostly given to children who suffer serious bacterial infections.
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