India drug regulator finds counterfeit medicines worth 20 mln rupees in raid

Alkem Laboratories

03/08/2023 15:28

Aug 3 (Reuters) - India's drug regulator recovered
counterfeit medicines worth more than 20 million rupees
($241,666) after a raid last month in the eastern city of
Kolkata, the federal health ministry said on Thursday.
    The raid, carried out by the Central Drugs Standard Control
Organisation, found counterfeit copies of leading brands by
manufacturers like Cipla  CIPL.NS , Sun Pharma  SUN.NS  and
Alkem Laboratories  ALKE.NS , the health ministry said.
    One person was arrested, it added.
    "Further investigation to find the manufacturer and supply
chain is ongoing to ensure supply of genuine medicine for
consumption of general public," the health ministry said.
    The medicines recovered included copies of acid reflux drugs
like Pan-D and Pantocid DSR, manufactured by Alkem and Sun
Pharma respectively, as well as Urimax-D, a medicine to treat an
enlarged prostrate gland medicine, made by Cipla.
    Authorities also recovered counterfeit copies of antibiotic
medicines Augmentin and Clavam.
    "Modi's government will not make any kind of compromise to
stop adulterated medicines," health minister Mansukh Mandaviya
said on Twitter, while congratulating the officers who carried
out the raid.
    The raid was the result of an investigation that began in
January this year, following a complaint from Sun Pharma, when
authorities recovered counterfeit medicines worth one million
rupees ($12,083) the health ministry said.    


($1 = 82.7590 Indian rupees)

 (Reporting by Shilpa Jamkhandikar; editing by Christina
Fincher)
 ((shilpa.jamkhandikar@thomsonreuters.com;))