Three new labs to be opened
Chandigarh: In the recent past, at least 24 children died in Madhya Pradesh after consuming cough syrup in September 2025, found cough syrup contaminated with a toxic industrial solvent. An alert has been declared not only in Haryana but also all over the country after this unfortunate incident. Information reveals, contamination of cough syrup with toxic substances is a recurring problem in the pharmaceutical industry. Past similar incidents include: 33 children suspected died in Gurugram from DEG contamination in 1998, 17 children suspected died in Jammu after consuming contaminated cough syrup in 2020 in India. Sources reveal, in 2022 around 150 children were suspected to have died from acute kidney injury linked to locally made syrups in Indonesia, when The World Health Organization (WHO) issued alerts and call for more stringent regulations. In 2023 at least 12 children died from cough syrup made in India at Cameroon, but labeled as a UK product. Similar incidents were reported also in Gambia and Uzbekistan in 2022.
Lab tests on samples of the Coldrif cough syrup in recent case of Madhya Pradesh which claimed 24 lives (may be more) of innocent children died from kidney failure after taking the contaminated syrup, found a diethylene glycol (DEG) concentration of nearly 45%, much higher than the pharmacopeial safety standard of 0.1%. DEG is a toxic chemical used in products like brake fluid and antifreeze. The World Health Organization (WHO) issued a global alert on October 13, 2025, concerning Coldrif and two other contaminated Indian-made syrups: Respifresh TR and ReLife. Indian authorities informed the WHO that none of the contaminated batches were exported. In case of deaths in Gambia in 2022 suspected due to contamination in October 2022, the WHO issued an alert after linking four Indian-made cough syrups to the deaths of at least 66 children from acute kidney injury.
The syrups were found to contain unacceptable amounts of DEG and ethylene glycol (EG), since the syrups were produced by a pharmaceuticals company based in Haryana, and had been exported to Gambia.The families of the victims filed a landmark court case against the Gambian government for mishandling drug imports in this case. The Uzbekistan Health Ministry announced in late 2022 that at least 18 children died after consuming a cough syrup, Dok-1 Max, produced by an Indian firm and tests confirmed the presence of toxic levels of DEG and EG in the cough syrup. The final death toll was later reported as 68 children were ill-affected due to syrup. Information reveals, an Uzbekistan court sentenced an Indian national and 22 others to prison terms ranging from 2 to 20 years for their roles in the tragedy. The families of the deceased children were also awarded compensation. The Indian government suspended Marion Biotech’s manufacturing license.
Haryana’s Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) and other authorities have initiated major actions against medical and pharmaceutical firms to ensure safety and combat illegal practices. Recent and prominent actions include a heightened alert regarding raw materials, convictions for unlicensed sales and took action on manufacturing companies using fraudulent documents, now monitoring of pharmaceutical raw materials used by the pharmaceutical companies. In October 2025, the State Drugs Controller in Haryana launched a new digital monitoring system to track high-risk solvents like propylene glycol, glycerin and sorbitol as well as over the use of toxic impurities like diethylene glycol (DEG) and ethylene glycol (EG) in pharmaceutical-grade solvents, which caused fatal cases of poisonings globally. The crackdown on adulterated materials has been extended to manufacturers of Ayurvedic medicines also to safeguard public health across all segments of drug production and convictions for illegal drug sales.
According to information, recently the owner of a grocery store was sentenced to three years in prison and fined for illegally stocking regulated allopathic drugs, including Alprazolam tablets and Oxytocin injections. Similarly, another firm in the state received a similar sentence for operating without a valid drug license and selling codeine-based syrups, which are frequently abused. The Health Department in the state has started a crackdown on fraudulent medical professionals. The Haryana Medical Council (HMC) has been actively pursuing cases of fraud involving fake documents and bogus certificates. In November 2024, the HMC busted a racket involving doctors who obtained registrations using forged degrees and fake No-Objection Certificates from other states. The council canceled five registrations and filed criminal charges against several ‘Jhola Chhap” doctors running clinics in rural areas without having a degree from the government. In May 2023, police booked staff from the Council of Indian Medicine in Haryana and two doctors for their involvement in issuing fake certificates. Haryana authorities have taken serious action against individual firms found to be in violation of quality and safety standards. Haryana state drug controller extended toxic impurity alert to ayurvedic medicine makers also. State Drugs Controller Lalit Kumar Goel has directed a vigil to the manufacturers of allopathic and ayurvedic medicines.
The directive, issued recently, mandates stringent testing and security measures for the solvent propylene glycol (PG), a key ingredient that has been linked to toxic contamination in various liquid oral formulations. This move signals a comprehensive strategy by the Haryana FDA to safeguard public health across all segments of drug production in the state over fatal cases of poisoning caused by the presence of toxic industrial chemicals, diethylene glycol (DEG) and ethylene glycol (EG), found as contaminants in pharmaceutical-grade solvents. While an initial advisory was issued to all allopathic drug manufacturers on October 5, 2025, the latest order acknowledges that PG-like solvents are also utilized in the preparation of traditional Indian medicines. The contamination of these seemingly harmless excipients has been responsible for devastating health crises, underscoring the necessity of a ‘zero-tolerance’ approach to quality control.
Lalit Kumar Goel, State Drug Controller Haryana has directed State Licensing Authority (ASU) under the Directorate of Ayush in Haryana, requesting them to immediately issue similar, strict directions to all ayurvedic drug manufacturing units. The mandate is clear that any ayurvedic firm that uses propylene glycol or PG-like solvents in their production must adopt the same rigorous quality checks required for allopathic manufacturers with an objective to prevent use of contaminated ingredients in drugs widely consumed by the public, particularly children. The FDA highlighted that PG is available in both commercial and pharmaceutical grades (IP/BP/USP) and is used both from domestic producers and international markets, including countries like China and Korea. Manufacturers are now strictly limited to procuring only the certified pharmaceutical grade to prevent any form of adulteration. Finished liquid oral drugs must also be tested for the absence of EG/DEG using gas chromatography, ensuring no contamination was introduced during the manufacturing process.
Health Minister Aarti Singh while talking to media persons said, Haryana’s commitment to protecting its citizens from potentially fatal adulterated medicines, the FDA aims to establish a transparent, high-quality, and contamination-free drug manufacturing across the state, thereby the proposal for setting up three testing laboratories in Haryana has been finalized by the state government.
