Medicine wholesalers under lens after raid

NEW DELHI: A raid conducted by Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) on Thursday found multiple inconsistencies in storage of medicines at Bhagirath Place in Chandni Chowk, one of the major wholesale markets for medicines in Delhi.

CDSCO comes under the Union health ministry. Senior officials told TOI that most of the vaccines and medicines were kept at room temperature, much above the prescribed range.

“Vaccines are supposed to be stored at 2 to 8 degrees Celsius, but we found several batches of the life-saving drugs lying in rooms without any temperature control. The condition of medicine storage was no better,” an official said.

There are 376 medicine shops at Bhagirath Place, which supply drug to stores across the capital and states such as Haryana, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Bihar. The officials said they raided close to 100 shops and lifted 118 samples of medicines for testing. “Many shops shut their shutter to escape action while the raid was on,” the official added.

The samples, he added, would be tested in a national drug laboratory for bioavailability—the proportion of a drug, which enters the system when introduced into the body and so is able to have an active effect—and other qualities following which further action may be initiated against the suppliers.

“There were many batches of drugs for which the traders could not produce bills. We will write to state governments for action against malpractices in sale and purchase,” a CDSCO official said. Doctors say exposure to heat makes many medicines, for example, the insulin, ineffective.

“It can break down certain common medicines into compounds that cause stomach ailments and kidney damage. Medicines for thyroid problems, birth control pills and drugs that contain hormones are particularly susceptible to temperature changes. These are often protein-based, and when protein gets hot, it changes its properties,” said a doctor.

He added that one should not take any medication that has changed colour or consistency, regardless of expiry date.