A tragic case of pharmaceutical negligence has come to light after 17 children under five died from consuming Coldrif cough syrup, manufactured by Sresan Pharmaceuticals in Tamil Nadu. Lab tests revealed the syrup contained 48.6% diethylene glycol (DEG) — nearly 480 times the permissible limit, a toxic industrial chemical known to cause kidney failure.
The incident underscores serious lapses in India’s drug regulation system, where fragmented oversight between the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) and State Drug Controllers often leads to inconsistent safety enforcement.
This is not an isolated case — India has previously witnessed similar tragedies in Gurugram (1998), Jammu & Kashmir (2020), and international scandals in The Gambia and Uzbekistan (2022) involving Indian-made syrups.
Following the Coldrif incident, the Union Health Ministry has ordered strict compliance with revised Schedule M norms under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, mandating DEG/EG testing, supply chain traceability, and stronger pharmacovigilance. States like Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan have already banned the syrup and similar formulations for children.
Experts are now calling for a unified drug safety authority, upgraded testing labs, and criminal accountability for negligent manufacturers. The tragedy serves as a stark reminder that medicine meant to heal should never harm — and that India’s pharmaceutical credibility depends on reform, vigilance, and transparency.
