Probe into death of 18 children after drinking ‘Made-in-India syrup’ in Uzbekistan, WHO also helping

Tashkent. The controversy over the death of children in the West African country The Gambia is yet to be resolved as Uzbekistan’s Ministry of Health has alleged that 18 children have died in the country after drinking a syrup made by an Indian pharmaceutical company. Several children have died allegedly after consuming ‘Doc-1 Max’, a tablet and syrup manufactured by Uttar Pradesh-based Marian Biotech, reports AKI.com, a local news website in Uzbekistan. It has been said in the report that these children were admitted to the hospital after respiratory illness.

The press report cited preliminary laboratory studies by the Ministry of Health of Uzbekistan, which showed the presence of ethylene glycol – a deadly chemical – in Dok-1 Max syrup. The special thing is that this chemical was also held responsible for the deaths of children in Gambia. In response to a mail sent to the World Health Organization (WHO) to confirm the incident, News18.com told that ‘WHO is in touch with the health authorities in Uzbekistan and stands ready to assist in further investigation’.

No more details shared
Mails sent to the Indian pharmaceutical company Marion Biotech and the Ministry of Health of Uzbekistan did not elicit any response. At the same time, there has been no response to a text message sent to two spokespersons of the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

66 children killed in Gambia
The death of children in Uzbekistan due to Indian medicine has come at such a time, while a WHO report has expressed the possibility of death of 66 children in Gambia due to four Indian-made cough syrups. However, the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) has informed the World Health Organization (WHO) that the Gambia has informed that no direct link has yet been established between cough syrup consumption and child deaths, and The children who died did not consume this syrup.

Drug Controller General of India Dr.V.G. Somani had said that four Indian-made cough syrup samples linked to the death of 66 children in Gambia, which were tested at a government laboratory here, were found to be in compliance with the norms. The government had also told in Parliament on December 15 that the samples of Maiden Pharma’s cough medicine have been found to be of quality.

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Tags: health, medicine, WHO