Gujarat officials clamp restriction on leading cough syrup brands

AHMEDABAD: Over 10 lakh cough and cold syrup bottles worth about Rs 4 crore made by some of the well-known companies have been freezed by drug officials in Gujarat at the level of stockists after being found to contain codine, a derivative of opium, a top GFDCA official said today.

"Cough syrups of 20 different brands have been freezed at the level of stockists and super stockists here, made by different companies including Pfizer, Cipla, Wockhardt, Lupin, IFCCA, Abott, amongst others for violating rule 96 of Drugs and Cosmetics Rules," GDFCA Commissioner H G Koshia told PTI.

"The manufacturers were selling these drugs without mentioning the generic name of the medicine - codine," he said adding that ten lakh bottles of cough and cold syrups valued at over Rs 4 crore have been restricted from sale here pending further investigations.

Around 22 different brands sell cough and cold syrups in Gujarat, of which 20 leading brands were found violating the rules during a week-long drive launched here, Koshia said.

The freeze comes on brands like Pfizer's-Corex, Cipla's-Rexcob and RC, Wockhardt's-Cough Band and Recodex, Lupin's-R-coff, IFCCA-Codex Q, Abott's-Chubsey, he said.

"While the Gujarat-based manufacturers have been served notices, for brands made outside the state, we have referred cases for investigations to the concerned drug controllers in those states," Koshia said.

The GFDCA also got 15 chemist shops closed here that were found selling these H-scheduled drugs without prescription or were operating without a pharmacist.