Inter-state gang manufacturing counterfeit tablets held

Hyderabad: In a major breakthrough on the illegal manufacturing and supply of counterfeit drugs, the joint operation conducted by the Telangana Drug Control Administration, Hyderabad Commissioner’s Task Force, and the Malakpet police dismantled an inter-state network operating from a pharma factory named Nectar Herbs and Drugs, located at Kotdwar in Uttarakhand.

According to DCA, for the first time, a meticulously coordinated inter-state operation named ‘Operation JAI’ was executed. The operation led to the busting of a 'Spurious Drug Manufacturing Unit' located in Kotdwar, Uttarakhand. It was found to be manufacturing counterfeit drugs and distributing them to several States, including Telangana.

On February 27, acting on intelligence gathered regarding the movement of spurious drugs, officers carried out a raid at Malakpet. During the raid, DCA found three cartons containing a total of 27,200 tablets of the spurious antibiotic ‘MPOD-200 Tablets’ (Cefpodoxime Proxetil and Lactic Acid Bacillus Tablets), worth Rs 7.34 lakh. These tablets were labeled as manufactured by 'Meg Lifesciences, Khasara, Sirmour, which is a non-existent company.

A person named Aravapalli Satyanarayana was caught selling the spurious drug stocks to Vangari Naveen near Moosarambagh X Roads. Upon inquiry, Aravapalli Satyanarayana revealed that he had purchased the spurious medicines from Gandla Ramulu of Meerpet. The officials apprehended Aravapalli Satyanarayana, Vangari Naveen, and Gandla Ramulu.

Special teams proceeded to Uttarakhand to trace the manufacturing location of spurious/counterfeit drugs. They kept vigil on the manufacturing facility of Nectar Herbs and Drugs, located in Kotdwar. A surprise raid was conducted on February 29, where they found counterfeit Cefixime tablets, IP 200 mg, falsely claimed as 'Omnicef-O 200 Tablets’.

Vishad Kumar, the CEO of Nectar Herbs and Drugs, allowed Sachin Kumar to manufacture spurious drugs at his factory. Sachin packed the dummy tablets with the labels of the reputed company Aristo, falsely claiming them to be an antibiotic drug, ‘Cefixime Tablets’.

Sachin revealed that he manufactured counterfeit drugs for reputed companies such as GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), Alkem, Aristo, and Cipla, counterfeits of Augmentin-625, Clavum-625, Omnicef-O 200, and Montair-LC. Sachin Kumar and Vishad Kumar, who are the prime accused in the spurious drug manufacturing case, were apprehended by the special team. The officials seized 38,350 tablets of counterfeit Omnicef-O 200 tablets (Cefixime tablets IP 200 mg) falsely labelled as manufactured by: Aristo Pharmaceuticals Pvt Ltd, 60.27 kg of orange-coloured tablets, 65.27 kg of white-coloured tablets; 30.18 kg of counterfeit Omnicef-O 200 aluminium foil; and 33.45 kg of counterfeit Omnicef-O 200 cartons. The officials seized stocks worth a total of Rs 44.33 lakh during the raid at Nectar Herbs and Drugs in Uttarakhand.