Cough syrups should be examined in government labs before being exported, according to the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation, which is the drug regulator. This will help India's reputation on the international market. After several firms' cough syrups allegedly caused scores of fatalities in The Gambia and Uzbekistan in 2022, the nation received a poor reputation. According to the idea, the syrups might undergo testing at federal or state labs. The Indian business Maiden Pharmaceuticals was charged by the World Health Organisation for selling syrup to The Gambia that included the deadly poisons ethylene glycol (EG) and diethylene glycol (DEG), which are used in braking fluid for automobiles. Another business, Marion Biotech, supplied cough medication to Uzbekistan that included EG or DEG as well. The two companies have denied the allegations, but since the incidents, the importing nations have been extremely wary of Indian pharmaceuticals. The top US agency, the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), brought attention to the potential link between extremely drug-resistant germs and eye drops manufactured by Chennai-based Global Pharma Healthcare last month. While taking action against Maiden and Marion, our government did not agree with the accusation against Global Pharma Healthcare. Additionally, perceptions are frequently just as significant as fact itself in business as they are in politics.Increasing from $16.79 billion in 2016–17 to $25.3 billion (Rs 208,231 crore) in 2022–23, pharmaceutical exports are a success story. The Indian government must take all necessary measures to prevent the tale from taking a fatal turn due to the rapacity and depravity of a small number of unscrupulous businesspeople. By the way, this isn't only a matter of economics; on moral grounds alone, it is wrong to tolerate the success of medicine producers who compromise the quality of their products. Additionally, they can try to sell fake or tainted cough syrups and other medications to India if they can do the same in The Gambia and Uzbekistan. They should be stopped and prosecuted because these guys don't deserve any leniency. However, enforcement has not been very prompt; the WHO issued a third alert in seven months last month for a tainted cough syrup made in India that was being sold in the Marshall Islands and Micronesia. Perhaps due to the tiny size of the two countries, this didn't raise as much of a stir in our country as it did when news of the reports from The Gambia and Uzbekistan broke. The third notice did highlight the reality that the first two accidents did not shake up the officialdom's complacency, though.
However, it has been claimed that the Department of Pharmaceuticals and the Union Health Ministry are currently considering the procedure to be used to guarantee that the quality of the pharmaceutical goods exported is up to grade. The sooner they complete it, the better for the nation.
