Last Updated:
Kerala suspended Coldrif cough syrup sales after deaths in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. Sresan Pharma’s Tamil Nadu plant is under probe for contamination.
11 children died after consuming Coldrif cough syrup in MP’s Chhindwara district. (Representative image)
After reports from Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan linked the cough syrup Coldrif to the deaths of at least 11 children over the past month, Kerala has become the latest state to suspend the sale and distribution of the medicine.
Kerala’s Health Minister Veena George announced on Saturday that the state’s Drugs Control Department had ordered an immediate halt to all sales of the product as a precautionary measure.
Recommended Stories
The action follows an ongoing probe into suspected contamination in a batch of the syrup, produced by Sresan Pharma, a manufacturer based in Tamil Nadu’s Kanchipuram district.
Minister Veena George, in a statement issued in Thiruvananthapuram, said that though the flagged batch was not found to have been distributed in Kerala, the government decided to act “out of an abundance of caution.”
“The Drugs Controller has instructed inspectors to completely stop the distribution and sale of Coldrif syrup in the state,” she said, adding that all eight distributors currently selling the product in Kerala have been directed to suspend operations immediately. Medical stores have also been told to remove existing stocks from their shelves.
The Health Minister said that samples of Coldrif and several other cough syrups have been taken for testing, with laboratory analysis currently in progress. He added that extensive inspections are being conducted across the state to trace any additional consignments that may have reached the market through private distribution.
The minister said the move is in line with national guidelines from the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), which ban the use of cough syrups for children below two years of age. She added that pharmacies have been directed not to dispense these syrups for infants, even if presented with a prescription.
The Cough Syrup Row
The Kerala government banned the cough syrup after similar bans were imposed by Tamil Nadu and Madhya Pradesh earlier this week, as the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) expanded its investigation into multiple drug manufacturing units across six states.
The issue first came to light in early September when several children in Madhya Pradesh’s Chhindwara district developed acute kidney failure, allegedly after consuming contaminated cough syrup. By the end of the month, the district had reported nine child deaths, with two additional fatalities recorded in Rajasthan.
Tamil Nadu Factory Probed
Sresan Pharma, the manufacturer of Coldrif, is at the centre of the probe, with its plant in Sunguvarchathram near Kanchipuram sealed by Tamil Nadu’s Food Safety and Drug Administration (FSDA).
“Test samples have been found adulterated. We have sought an explanation from the manufacturer and halted production until further orders,” an FSDA official told news agency PTI.
The Tamil Nadu government has officially banned the sale of Coldrif statewide from October 1 and directed the immediate withdrawal of all stocks from pharmacies and distributors. Reports indicate the company’s products were also distributed to Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Puducherry.
The FSDA stated that samples are being sent to government laboratories for detailed testing to determine the presence and concentration of Diethylene Glycol contamination. “Until the company provides a satisfactory explanation and test results are verified, production will remain suspended,” the official said.
Kerala, India, India
October 04, 2025, 22:41 IST
Loading comments…
Read More
