• Source:JND
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Following the deaths of several children in Madhya Pradesh after consumption of contaminated cough syrups, demand for syrups in Delhi has declined by around 30 per cent, according to pharmaceutical companies cited by jagran.com. Consumers are now more cautious about purchasing cough syrups, and many doctors are also refraining from prescribing them in light of growing safety concerns.

According to Sandeep Nangia, Delhi president of the Retail Distribution Chemists Alliance, sales have declined by an average of 25 to 30 per cent since early October, while tablet and capsule sales have seen an increase. Chemists in Delhi say that customers are now demanding tablets, powders, or other alternatives over syrups.

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CDSCO Calls For Nationwide Audit

Meanwhile, India’s top drug regulator, the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO), called for a nationwide audit of all cough syrup manufacturers to ensure product safety and strict compliance with quality standards.

The CDSCO has sought a comprehensive list of all cough syrup manufacturers from each state and is establishing a “robust and proper system” for enhanced audits and surveillance, News18 quoted a senior official as saying.

“We have asked for the list of all manufacturers of cough syrup from the states and union territories. We will begin doing audits of all manufacturers of cough syrup across the country. We are coming up with a proper, robust system for that,” the official said, adding that an official announcement is expected within the next ten days.

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CDSCO Responds To WHO

Even as the death toll from toxic cough syrup rose to 22, the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) informed the World Health Organisation (WHO) that none of the three cough syrups - Coldrif, Respifresh TR, and ReLife, were exported from India.

This comes as the UN health agency on Wednesday sought answers from the Indian authorities over the export of Coldrif in view of several deaths among young children in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan due to acute renal failure and acute encephalitis syndrome.