AT LEAST 16 children have died after taking cough syrup contaminated with a toxic industrial chemical.
The shocking deaths occurred in Madhya Pradesh, central India, in late August.
These are some of the faces of 16 children who died after taking cough syrup[/caption]
The shocking deaths occurred in Madhya Pradesh, central India, in late August[/caption]
The cough syrup was contaminated with a toxic industrial chemical.[/caption]
Tests conducted on October 2 confirmed the presence of diethylene glycol, a poisonous substance commonly used in brake fluids and glues.
Alarmingly, the children had consumed the medicine at levels 500 times the permissible limit.
All 16 victims were under the age of five and had been prescribed the syrups for mild colds and fevers. Within days, their health deteriorated rapidly.
Many developed severe kidney infections, and were placed on dialysis in desperate attempts to save them.
Tragically, all 16 children died from kidney failure, with subsequent kidney biopsies confirming the presence of diethylene glycol poisoning.
The syrups linked to the deaths were Coldrif and Nextro-DS, both sold locally across Madhya Pradesh.
Parents described horrifying declines in their children’s health after taking the medicine.
Mohammad Amin Khan said his five-year-old son, Adnan, began vomiting and then stopped urinating. Adnan later died during treatment in Nagpur.
Another grieving parent recounted that their three-year-old son, Vikas, also stopped urinating after taking the syrup. Vikas, too, tragically died.
Initially, Madhya Pradesh Health Minister Rajendra Shukla denied any contamination, claiming early tests showed nothing unusual.
However, a subsequent analysis by the Tamil Nadu Drug Control Authority confirmed high levels of diethylene glycol, exposing the true scale of the tragedy.
S. Ranganathan, owner of the Tamil Nadu-based company that manufactured the syrup, was arrested on Wednesday in Chennai. Police confirmed he will appear in court before being transferred to Chhindwara.
Local authorities have intensified efforts to curb the circulation of contaminated medicines. Random samples of cough syrups are being tested, and door-to-door visits are underway to retrieve Coldrif bottles.
District administrator Harendra Narayan said: “We got 30-40 bottles… we recalled some from retailers and stockists.”
He added that 594 bottles of the syrup had been sold to pharmaceutical stockists in the region over the last six weeks.
By law, Indian drugmakers must test each batch of raw materials and the final product.
Shivani Thakre, 24, the mother of a child who died after consuming Coldrif cough syrup[/caption]
Nilesh Suryavanshi, 32, the father of a three and a half year old child who was admitted at the Government Medical College, holds a bottle of Coldrif cough syrup, which has been linked to the deaths of multiple children[/caption]
Exports of cough syrup require another layer of testing at government-mandated laboratories – a rule introduced in 2023 after the deaths of over 10 children in Gambia, Uzbekistan, and Cameroon were linked to Indian syrups.
The World Health Organisation has highlighted a “regulatory gap” in India’s screening of medicines sold domestically, warning that some exports may have been made unofficially.
Authorities have also warned people to avoid Respifresh and RELIFE, two locally sold syrups made by Gujarat-based Shape Pharma and Rednex Pharmaceuticals, after tests found the same toxic chemical.
Known as the “pharmacy of the world,” India is the third-largest drug producer by volume, after the U.S. and China.
On October 4, the Madhya Pradesh government imposed a complete ban on Coldrif syrup, with Chief Minister Mohan Yadav vowing strict action against those responsible.
A government doctor, Dr Praveen Soni, who also ran a private practice in Chhindwara, was arrested for negligence.
He had allegedly prescribed the syrup to several of the children who died.
The arrest sparked controversy and criticism from the medical community.
The Federation of All India Medical Association (FAIMA) condemned the move, arguing that authorities were making Dr Soni a “scapegoat.”
FAIMA Chief Patron Dr Rohan Krishnan said: “It is a doctor’s responsibility to have detailed knowledge about the medicines he prescribes. He has made a mistake. But to make him the scapegoat to show action to the public is not right.”
The organisation also stressed that drug regulators and manufacturers share responsibility, noting that companies had failed to update warning labels or block banned formulations.
FAIMA has called for an impartial investigation panel, which should include medical experts, pharmacologists, and representatives from different states to ensure transparency and accountability.
Meanwhile, parents continue to mourn the sudden loss of their children, many of whom seemed healthy before taking the syrups.
The poison acted fast, leaving little time for intervention, while local hospitals were overwhelmed treating multiple children simultaneously.
The community has expressed anger and shock over the deaths, and investigators are examining how the syrups entered local pharmacies.
Authorities are also reviewing regulatory failures that allowed the toxic medicines to be prescribed in the first place.
The tragic deaths have raised serious questions about medical oversight in Madhya Pradesh.
Residents are calling for stricter checks on medicines given to children, demanding accountability from both doctors and manufacturers.
Families are seeking justice for the victims, while the case has sparked a national conversation on drug safety in India.
Experts warn that without stricter regulation, such tragedies could happen again.
The Madhya Pradesh government has pledged continuous monitoring of all pediatric medications.
Meanwhile, parents of the deceased children are left grappling with unimaginable loss, mourning young lives cut tragically short by a preventable poison.
Family members bury the body of Nilesh Suryavanshi’s three-and-a-half-year-old child in a village in Parasia, India after the child drank the cough syrup[/caption]
The Madhya Pradesh government has pledged continuous monitoring of all pediatric medications[/caption]
