Deadly Coldrif Cough Syrup Tragedy: 23 Children Dead as Madhya Pradesh CM Blames Tamil Nadu for Regulatory Failures

Bhopal:

Madhya Pradesh continues to struggle with the aftermath of the Coldrif cough syrup tragedy that has claimed 23 children's lives. Chief Minister Dr. Mohan Yadav has directly accused the Tamil Nadu government of regulatory failure and delayed action. His comments come amid reports that Opposition Leader Rahul Gandhi may visit Chhindwara on October 12 to meet affected families. Yadav challenged Gandhi to instead question the DMK government in Tamil Nadu about alleged negligence.

"The deaths occurred due to manufacturing defects in the cough syrup produced at the Tamil Nadu factory. Timely action and sampling should have been initiated there first," Yadav stated after visiting hospitals in Nagpur where children from Chhindwara, Betul, and Pandhurna districts are receiving treatment.

"Congress leaders questioning us should go to Tamil Nadu and interrogate their alliance partner's government about how the factory's license was renewed," he added.

"How was the drug license issued, renewed, and how was operation from such a small facility permitted? Rahul Gandhi should visit Tamil Nadu and pose these questions to the state government," Yadav emphasized, maintaining that regulatory failures at the manufacturing unit were at the root of this tragedy.

The Chief Minister defended Madhya Pradesh's crisis response, highlighting that immediate disciplinary action has been taken against negligent officials and those involved in distributing the toxic syrup.

"We've already acted against our drug controller and inspectors for failing to conduct random sampling. Action has also been initiated against the doctor who prescribed Coldrif cough syrup, which was sold through his wife's pharmacy. Our police have arrested the Tamil Nadu drug manufacturing company's owner. We will spare nobody in this matter," Yadav assured.

Chhindwara Superintendent of Police Ajay Pandey confirmed the arrest of 75-year-old Ranganathan Govindan, owner of Kancheepuram-based Sresan Pharmaceuticals which manufactured Coldrif syrup, from Chennai.

"Ranganathan operated the pharmaceutical unit as a proprietorship entity alongside chemical analysts and other team members. Due to his diabetes and hypertension, we're conducting a thorough medical examination in Tamil Nadu, after which he'll be presented before a local court and brought to Chhindwara on transit remand," Pandey explained.

The 12-member Special Investigation Team has six members currently in Chennai coordinating the transit process.

Pandey added that questioning Ranganathan would reveal the source of the hazardous chemical in the cough syrup.

"There was strong possibility of Ranganathan fleeing the country as his cell phones were switched off, but our team successfully apprehended him," he noted.

The officer confirmed that postmortems of the three recently deceased children have been completed, but reports remain confidential. "We're gathering more information with help from the forensic science lab and experts," Pandey said.

According to official sources, the syrup has killed 23 children—20 from Chhindwara, one from Pandhurna, and two from Betul. Several others are fighting for survival in Nagpur and Chhindwara hospitals.