Infant Dies After Receiving Herbal Cough Syrup in Madhya Pradesh: Another Tragedy Amid Ongoing Medication Crisis

A government health facility with no physician present forced a family to seek help from a local medical store, leading to tragic consequences.

Chhindwara district in Madhya Pradesh, already facing national attention after approximately 20 children died from kidney failure caused by contaminated cough syrup, has experienced another heartbreaking incident. Five-month-old Ruhi Minote passed away Thursday morning after receiving multiple medications, including a herbal cough syrup, purchased from Kurethe Medicals, a private medical store in Bichua town.

When Ruhi's parents could not locate a doctor at Bichua's government health facility, they sought treatment from a nearby medical shop on Monday. "The store provided us with small sachets of medicine and a herbal cough syrup," explained Sandip Minote, the baby's father. "She appeared to be getting better initially, but her condition deteriorated by Tuesday. When we hurried to the community health centre on Thursday, she was pronounced dead upon arrival."

After receiving the complaint, Bichua police filed an inquest under Section 194 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS). The two individuals operating the medical store are currently being interrogated, while teams from the state Food and Drugs Department and Health Department have confiscated the medicines for laboratory testing. Bichua Police Station in-charge Satish Uikey stated, "If negligence is established, we will take strict action."

Local authorities have sealed the medical store while the investigation continues.

Last month, toxic cough syrup claimed 20 children's lives in Parasia and Chourai areas of Chhindwara and three additional fatalities in Pandhurna and Betul districts. Those deaths were connected to Coldrif cough syrup, manufactured by Tamil Nadu-based Sresan Pharma and reportedly prescribed by government pediatrician Dr. Pravin Soni at his private practice.

A Special Investigation Team (SIT) investigating the case has arrested six individuals thus far, including Dr. Soni and Sresan Pharma's owner, Ranganathan Govindan.

On Thursday, the SIT also identified Dr. Soni's wife, Jyoti Soni, as a suspect for allegedly destroying evidence. She has remained at large since her husband's arrest.

Following the five-month-old's death, district residents are calling for tighter regulation of pharmacies and regular inspection of all over-the-counter medications.