A special investigation team (SIT) has been formed in Madhya Pradesh to investigate the deaths of 14 children in Chhindwara, suspected to be linked to a toxic cough syrup. The investigation includes arrests, exhumations, and a ban on the implicated cough syrup.
The Union Budget for 2026-27, presented by Finance Minister (FM) Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday, which was a first, had an excellent domestic macro backdrop. According to the first advance estimates, gross domestic product (GDP) in constant prices is projected to grow 7.4 per cent in the current financial year, against 6.5 per cent in 2024-25.
The Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) has initiated a nationwide campaign to test, inspect, and audit cough syrup manufacturers following concerns about contaminated products and child deaths. The initiative aims to ensure adherence to safety standards and regulatory compliance.
Danish pharma major Novo Nordisk on Friday launched its blockbuster type 2 diabetes treatment injection Ozempic, globally popular for its weight-loss benefits.
The Indian Medical Association (IMA) has defended a doctor arrested in connection with cough syrup deaths in Madhya Pradesh, attributing the incident to failures in the drugs regulatory system.
rediffGURU Nayagam PP advises young aspirants how to pick the right course and career.
India's drug regulator CDSCO has recalled three cough syrups and halted their production after the WHO raised concerns about potential contamination and links to child deaths. The WHO is investigating reports of pediatric illnesses and deaths in India potentially linked to contaminated syrups.
The WHO will take a call on issuing a 'Global Medical Products Alert' on the cough syrup, Coldrif, after receiving an official confirmation from authorities here. The agency issues such alerts for substandard and contaminated medicines.
The Delhi High Court has asked the central government why it cannot reduce the GST on air purifiers, considering the poor air quality in Delhi. The court's concern is that the current 18% GST makes air purifiers unaffordable for the common man.
Sandwiched between a Hero MotoCorp showroom and a shop that hires out cooking utensils is a small, dingy building that's been locked up. The non-descript two-room building is a manufacturing unit of Sresan Pharmaceuticals, the pharma company made its Coldriff cough syrup that has allegedly killed 25 children in Madhya Pradesh.
S Ranganathan, the owner of the Tamil Nadu-based pharmaceuticals company that manufactured the Coldrif cough syrup linked to 20 children's deaths, has been arrested.
The Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) will conduct testing, inspection and auditing of cough syrup manufacturers.
Dr Sulbha Arora, clinical director and fertility specialist at Nova IVF Fertility, explains everything you need to know about egg freezing in India, including the process, the cost and the risks involved.
'Obesity is a raging conversation globally now, and manufacturing of generics will pick up after the patent expires.'
Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance (IPA) on Friday said US President Donald Trump's move to impose 100 per cent import tariffs on pharmaceutical drugs from October 1 will impact only patented and branded products, not generic medicines.
A generic cough syrup supplied to the Rajasthan government has been linked to the deaths of two children and others falling sick in the state, prompting authorities to ban 22 batches of the drug and order an inquiry.
Rise in raids on illicit drug manufacturing units, alongside arrests for the production, sale, or distribution of spurious or adulterated drugs.
Amid controversy over USPresident Donald Trump's comments linking the use of Tylenol and other related paracetamol products by pregnant women to autism in children, experts and industry executives say that since India's export of the drug to the US is less, it will hardly affect the country's pharma exports to America.
'When an establishment operates despite demolition or closure orders, without proper fire exits, evacuation plans or safety audits, and yet is allowed to host large crowds, the state cannot hide behind the language of accident.' 'The authorities were aware of the risks and of the violations, but chose not to act decisively because doing so would have inconvenienced those with influence and financial stakes.' 'In such a scenario, the moral and legal responsibility for the resulting deaths moves from negligence towards culpability; calling it 'murder' is a way of underlining that these lives were sacrificed at the altar of greed and complicity, not fate.'
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has issued an alert against three "substandard" oral cough syrups identified in India and urged national regulatory authorities worldwide to immediately notify it if these are detected in their country.
The Indian pharmaceutical industry is likely to benefit from a major wave of patent expiries in the US, as small-molecule drugs worth $63.7 billion are expected to go off-patent between 2025-29, a 65 per cent rise over the previous five years, according to a report by Antique stock broking limited.
The $1.2 billion in-space manufacturing market is expected to grow and be worth more than $20 billion by 2033.
The Maharashtra Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) has suspended the license of a caterer that operates the canteen at the MLA hostel in Mumbai, after a Shiv Sena legislator assaulted a staffer for allegedly serving stale food.
India's pharmaceuticals and medical devices industries are still hopeful that trade negotiations with the US could cut a fairer deal for both sides, after President Donald Trump announced a 25 per cent tariff rate on India on a social networking platform without divulging the finer details.
State governments have requested the Centre for export incentives, lifting of import duty in the case of cotton for the textile sector and GST exemptions.
Large pharmaceutical firms feel that if the quality parameters and assurance levels are brought up to the level of branded generics, then Jan Aushadhi medicines would find it difficult to retain their affordability.
The Kalyani Priyadarshan starrer is the kind of incentive superhero origin story that can alter the way such films are made in Malayalam cinema, feels Arjun Menon.
An alleged synthetic narcotics producer, Kubbawala Mustafa, wanted on an Interpol Red Notice, was deported to India from the UAE in an operation coordinated by the CBI and Mumbai police.
'In my 26 years at Raj Bhavan, working with more than ten governors, I can tell you C P Radhakrishnan Sir stands out.'
Any industrial policy is only as good as how it is applied and the other reforms that support it. This was as true 40 years ago as it is now, points out Debashis Basu.
The drugs seized include 3,089 kilograms of charas, 158 kg of Methamphetamine and 25 kg of morphine.
The government has been stringent with pricing changes. Prices of 651 essential medicines came down from April 1, 2023 by 6.73 per cent with the government capping ceiling prices of these drugs.
Minister of State for Health Bharati Pravin Pawar said 642 prosecutions were launched for manufacturing, sale and distribution of spurious/adulterated drugs, while 262 persons were arrested.
Children below the age of 15 years account for about 10 to 12 per cent of India's overall TB burden.
The USTR report, released just ahead of the US' April 2 deadline for implementing reciprocal tariffs, has also cited high tariffs and price caps, which have not increased in line with inflation, as key obstacles for US businesses.
'Anti-cancer, anti-diabetic, and other drugs suspected to be spurious were seized from the raid carried out at the firm.'
All doctors must prescribe generic drugs, failing which they will be penalised and even their license to practice may also be suspended for a period, according to the new regulations issued by the National Medical Commission (NMC).
For the consumer, there would be practically no impact on prices of essential medicines this year.
Indian pharmaceutical companies have made major strides in adhering to stringent US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) norms in 2024, with data suggesting a decline in the number of adverse classification outcomes of inspections across biologics, drugs, and devices. In 2023, the USFDA conducted 225 inspections, which led to 18 cases of Official Action Indicated (OAI) and 117 cases of Voluntary Action Indicated (VAI).
Members of the IMA and IPA had met Mansukh Mandaviya on Monday and expressed their concerns over the regulations.
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