Drug regulator initiates probe
After WHO links children deaths in Gambia to cough syrup made in India
New Delhi (PTI): A probe has been initiated by India's drug regulator after the WHO issued an alert saying cough syrups manufactured by an Indian firm could potentially be linked to the death of children in The Gambia, official sources said.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) on Wednesday warned that four "contaminated" and "substandard" cough syrups allegedly produced by Maiden Pharmaceuticals Limited based in Haryana's Sonepat could be the reason for the deaths in the West African nation.
The sources said the exact "one-to-one causal relation of death" has neither been provided by the United Nations Health Agency nor the details of labels and products been shared by it with the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO), enabling it to confirm the identity or source of the manufacturing of the products.
"Based on available information, the CDSCO has already taken up an urgent investigation into the matter with regulatory authorities in Haryana.
"While all required steps will be taken, as a robust regulatory authority, the WHO has been requested to share with CDSCO at the earliest the report on the establishment of a causal relation to the deaths with the medical products in question, photographs of labels/products etc," the sources said.
According to the sources, the WHO had on September 29 informed the Drugs Controller General of India that it was providing technical assistance and advice to The Gambia.
It had highlighted that a significant contributing factor to the deaths was suspected to be the use of medicines which may have been contaminated with Diethylene Glycol/Ethylene Glycol, and said its presence had been confirmed in some of the samples it tested.
The CDSCO said it responded to the WHO within an hour-and-a-half after receiving intimation, by taking up the matter with the state regulatory authority.
A detailed investigation was launched to ascertain the facts and details into the matter in collaboration with Haryana State Drugs Controller, the source explained.
From the preliminary inquiry, it has been made out that Maiden Pharmaceutical Limited is the manufacturer licensed by the state drug controller for the products under reference, and holds manufacturing permission for these products.
"The company has manufactured and exported these products only to The Gambia so far," the source said.
It is a practice that the importing country tests the products for quality before sanctioning their usage there.
As per the tentative results received by WHO out of the 23 samples tested, four samples have been found to contain Diethylene Glycol/ Ethylene Glycol as indicated.
It has also been informed by WHO that the certificate of analysis will be made available to it in near future and WHO will share it with India.
"At the same time, the exact one-to-one causal relation of death has not yet been provided by WHO, nor have the details of labels/ products been shared by WHO with CDSCO enabling it to confirm the identity/ source of the manufacturing of the products," the official source stated.
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India-Oman free trade pact to give new energy to bilateral relations: PM Modi
Muscat (PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) between India and Oman will give new confidence and energy to the bilateral relations.
Speaking at the India-Oman Business Summit here, the visiting Prime Minister said the summit will give a new direction to the India-Oman partnership.
"Today, we are taking such a historic decision, the echo of which will be heard for many decades to come. Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement that is, CEPA, will give our partnership new confidence and new energy in the 21st century," the prime minister said.
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He said India’s nature has always been progressive and self-driven.
Whenever India grows, it helps its friends grow as well, Modi said and added India is progressing towards becoming the world’s third-largest economy.
"This is beneficial for the entire world. However, it is even more beneficial for Oman because, in addition to being close friends, we are also maritime neighbours. Our people know each other well. We have generations of trust in our business relations, and we understand each other’s markets very well," he said.
Modi invited companies from Oman to become partner in the growth story. He said India's economy is growing at a high rate because over the past 11 years, India has not just changed policies, but has also changed its economic DNA.
He informed the gathering about the reforms, including GST and IBC, India has implemented in the recent years.
Modi arrived here on Wednesday on a two-day visit.
India-Oman bilateral trade was about USD 10.5 billion (exports USD 4 billion and imports USD 6.54 billion) in 2024-25.
#WATCH | Muscat, Oman: At the India-Oman Business Summit, PM Narendra Modi says, "Today, we are making a historic decision whose echo will be heard for decades to come. The Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) will fill us with new trust and new energy in the 21st… pic.twitter.com/NkJNADb8Rn
— ANI (@ANI) December 18, 2025
