Karnataka FSDA cancels 16 pharmacy licences, suspends 8 in spurious drugs probe
Karnataka's drug regulator has cancelled 16 pharmacy licences and suspended eight others, including Pfizer's Nelamangala depot, amid a probe into spurious drug distribution.
The Karnataka Food Safety and Drugs Administration (FSDA) has cancelled the licences of 16 pharmaceutical retailers and wholesalers and suspended eight others, including the Nelamangala depot of multinational firm Pfizer, as part of its investigation into the alleged distribution and sale of spurious drugs.
The action stems from a case uncovered on August 18 at a farmhouse in Bidadi, in Bengaluru South district, where an unlicenced operation for repacking and relabelling drugs was allegedly running. The FSDA seized spurious drugs, machinery and printing material valued at ₹5.05 crore from the premises. With the preliminary inquiry pointing to a wider network, the State government set up a Special Investigation Team (SIT) led by IPS officer C. Vamsi Krishna.
Addressing the press on Sunday (September 20), Health Minister U.T. Khader said licences of suspect firms and pharmacies had been cancelled, while some others were suspended for failing to cooperate with the SIT. "We have stopped Pfizer's sale in the State because they did not cooperate with the investigation," he said, adding that he could not disclose much as the probe was ongoing.
The Minister said strict action would follow against anyone named in the SIT report once the investigation concludes, irrespective of their power or influence. Asked where the public should source medicines, he said, "At present, everything is original in the government hospitals," and reiterated that medicines available at government hospitals are safe.
According to the FSDA list, the cancelled licences include Avesco Healthcare in Prabhakar Reddy Layout, Bengaluru Speciality Pharma in Shivajinagar, Museum Road in Chamarajpet, Patel Medi Trade in Jayanagar, N.S. Pharma in Hubballi and Sagar Pharma in Kumaraswamy Layout, among others. Those suspended include Sagar Pharma in Tilak Nagar, Surya Speciality Hospital in Bommasandra Industrial Area and Vivanta Pharmaceuticals in Jayanagar, among others.
In a press statement, the FSDA urged citizens to buy medicines only from licenced pharmacies and against valid tax invoices, and to report suspicious packaging or non-functional QR codes on drug labels.
Investigators say the accused allegedly procured low-cost medicines from neighbouring States, refilled them into new vials and relabelled them as expensive, life-saving drugs of multinational companies. The department seized 30 boxes of expired drugs along with injection-filling machinery, forged labels and stamps. Batch numbers and entries of the seized drugs have been blocked on the FSDA portal to prevent further sale or distribution, and samples have been sent for laboratory testing to verify chemical composition, sterility and potency. The premises were being used to manufacture, store and distribute drugs without a valid licence, and a criminal case has been registered under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940.