Top drug regulator DCGI flags 185 substandard, 4 spurious drugs in June 2025
These spurious drugs were reported from Bihar, one from New Delhi, and two from Telangana.
The monthly report, published by the CDSCO, highlights India's persistent challenge in maintaining drug integrity across the nation. Of the 185 NSQ drug samples, 55 were flagged by central drugs laboratories, and 130 by state labs.
A senior Delhi government official said that the Delhi drugs control department has down on the sale of fake anti-cholesterol medicines, primarily used for preventing serious cardiovascular conditions such as heart attacks and strokes.
The Union health ministry in a statement said that these drug samples failed one or more specified quality parameters, ranging from inadequate active ingredients to issues with dissolution, uniformity of weight, or sterility.
The failure is specific to the tested batch and does not necessarily indicate a broader concern for other drug products from the same manufacturer available in the market, the ministry said.
'Investigations revealed that these spurious drugs were manufactured by unauthorized entities using brand names owned by legitimate companies, highlighting the severity of the counterfeit drug problem. The matters are currently under investigation, and stringent action will be taken as per relevant acts and rules,' the ministry said.
This rigorous identification and removal of NSQ and spurious drugs from the market is a regular collaborative exercise between central and state regulators.
Meanwhile, the ministry of health has implemented several measures to combat the menace of spurious and substandard drugs in India.
As part of the plan, the government has strengthened the regulatory framework by making suitable amendments to the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940. The government has introduced more stringent penalties for manufacturing spurious and adulterated drugs. Some offenses have also been made cognizable and non-bailable.
The government has also enhanced the testing infrastructure and made provision of licence suspension/cancellation which means that state drug regulators have the authority to suspend or cancel manufacturing licences of companies found to have produced NSQ drugs. Efforts are underway to ensure all the drug makers are following good manufacturing practice (GMP) at their units.
GMP is a system for ensuring that products are consistently produced and controlled according to quality standards. It is a critical component of quality assurance in the pharmaceutical industry. It ensures patient safety, product consistency, prevention of contamination or errors etc.
In May, the apex drug regulator declared 186 drugs as substandard. Two samples were reported as spurious during the month.
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