Maiden Pharma's cough syrups are safe, WHO jumped the gun: DCGI

'Irreparable damage' to Indian pharma's global image, drug regulator writes to WHO

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File photo of cough syrup. Photo: Shutterstock

Sohini Das Mumbai
India’s drug regulator has written to the World Health Organization (WHO), claiming samples of Maiden Pharma’s cough syrups supposedly causing the deaths of children in Gambia were not found to be contaminated with diethylene glycol (DEG) and ethylene glycol (EG) upon testing by a technical committee constituted by the Indian government.

Drugs Controller General of India V G Somani also highlighted in his letter to Rogério Gaspar, director of regulation and prequalification, WHO, that the statement issued by the global agency in October this year was ‘amplified by global media’, which led to a narrative being built internationally targeting the quality of Indian pharmaceutical (pharma) products.

“This, in turn, has adversely impacted the image of India’s pharma products across the

First Published: Dec 15 2022 | 6:32 PM IST

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