Deadly Cough Syrup Claims 16 Children: Madhya Pradesh Government Takes Swift Action Against Officials

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister (R) and the Coldrif cough syrup

Bhopal:

Following the tragic deaths of 16 children who consumed Coldrif cough syrup in Chhindwara, the Madhya Pradesh government has initiated a comprehensive administrative reorganization. Shobhit Costa, Deputy Director of the state's Food and Drug Administration, has been suspended with immediate effect.

Several senior officials have faced reassignment, including Chhindwara Drug Inspector Gaurav Sharma, Jabalpur Drug Inspector Sharad Kumar Jain, and Drug Controller Dinesh Maurya.

Chief Minister Mohan Yadav convened an emergency high-level meeting at his residence on Monday to implement urgent and stringent measures preventing further fatalities.

Among the directives issued by the Chief Minister was an order to confiscate all existing stock of the now-banned Coldrif syrup. This includes launching an intensive door-to-door campaign across Chhindwara and neighboring districts to recover bottles from households.

"We must ensure every family that purchased this syrup is reached," the Chief Minister emphasized, while also directing community health workers and local officials to participate in this critical awareness campaign.

He further instructed officials to evaluate the quality of other medications recently sold in the affected areas.

The Chief Minister also ordered examination of other cough syrups in circulation and requested a 'comprehensive drive to verify if warnings for medicines are followed.'

Speaking to NDTV, he warned that strict action would be taken against rule violators, highlighting that combination drugs—medications containing two or more active ingredients—must never be administered to children under four years of age.

"We took immediate action after the cough syrup scandal emerged. Medicines from the Tamil Nadu factory were banned. Three out of 19 tested samples failed quality standards. We have instructed two additional factories to suspend production and have informed the central government," he stated.

"Negligence will not be tolerated. What happened to these children is absolutely unacceptable, and we are ensuring strict accountability," the Chief Minister asserted.

Eight of the 16 children who died after being administered the Coldrif cough syrup.

Meanwhile, political pressure intensifies on the ruling BJP as Congress state chief Jitu Patwari visited Chhindwara and met with families of the deceased children.

He accused the government of indifference and demanded compensation of Rs 1 crore for each affected family. "The government's compassion seems to have died even after 16 innocent children lost their lives," he declared.

"We demand strict punishment for the culprits and the resignation of Health Minister Rajendra Shukla. These children became victims of government negligence and the drug mafia's greed. Congress stands firmly with every bereaved family."

In a related development, Dr. Praveen Soni, a medical professional arrested for prescribing the dangerous syrup, appeared before a local court and was remanded to judicial custody until October 9.

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