Uzbekistan claims 18 children DEAD after consuming cough syrup made in India; WHO to assist in probe

New Delhi: In a big embarrassment for the country, Uzbekistan has claimed that at least 18 children have died after allegedly consuming cough syrup made in India. The Health Ministry of Uzbekistan has issued a statement stating that the children who died had consumed cough syrup Dok-1 Max - manufactured by Noida-based Marion Biotech. The Dok 1 Max syrup and tablets are anti-cold medications. The development brings back the horror of the death of nearly 70 kids in Gambia allegedly due to the consumption of cough syrup made by an Indian pharmaceutical company.

In its statement, the Health Ministry of Uzbekistan stated that the laboratory tests of a batch of syrups found the presence of ethylene glycol - a toxic substance in the preparation. The Ministry further claimed that the syrup was given to children at home without a doctor's prescription, either by their parents or on the advice of pharmacists, with doses that exceeded the standard dose for children.

The Uzbekistan government has ordered the authorities to immediately withdraw all tablets and cough syrups of Dok 1 from the sale. Reports also said that at least seven health officials have been removed from service and several others are under scrutiny for failing to detect the fatalities. 

In response to an email from ANI, seeking further details on the deaths, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said, “The WHO is in contact with the health authorities in Uzbekistan  and is ready to assist in further investigations.”

According to health experts, cough syrups should not contain even traces of ethylene glycol, which is found in industrial-grade of glycerine that is forbidden in medicines. Dok 1 manufacturer Marion Biotech also exports to the United Kingdom, Georgia, Nigeria, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan, Kenya, Ethiopia, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Laos and Vietnam.

According to health experts, cough syrups should not contain even traces of ethylene glycol, which is found in industrial-grade of glycerine that is forbidden in medicines.  

What happened in Gambia?

It may be recalled that at least 66 children had died in Gambia allegedly after consuming India-made cough syrups. However, the Gambian government later denied any link between the child deaths and the Indian cough syrups. On the death of 66 children in Gambia, the Centre had recently informed the Rajya Sabha that the control samples of four cough syrups that allegedly led to the deaths in the African country were found to be of standard quality.

Bhagwant Khuba, Union Minister of State for Chemical and Fertiliser, gave a written reply to the Rajya Sabha in which he stated, “As per the report of the Government Analyst, the samples have been declared to be of standard quality. The said samples were also found negative for both Diethylene Glycol (DEG) and Ethylene Glycol (EG).”