(Reuters) – India’s drug regulator has recovered counterfeit drugs worth more than Rs 20 million ($241,666) after a raid last month in the eastern city of Kolkata, the federal health ministry said on Thursday.
The raid, conducted by the Central Drugs Standard Control Organization, found counterfeit copies of leading brands from manufacturers such as Cipla, Sun Pharma and Alkem Laboratories, the Health Ministry said.
One person was arrested, it added.
“Further investigations are underway to find the manufacturer and supply chain to ensure the supply of genuine medicines for consumption by the general public,” the health ministry said.
The drugs recovered include copies of acid reflux drugs such as Pan-D and Pantocid DSR, produced by Alkem and Sun Pharma, respectively, as well as Urimax-D, a drug for treating an enlarged prostate gland, made by Cipla.
Authorities also recovered counterfeit copies of the antibiotics Augmentin and Clavam.
“The Modi government will not make any compromises to stop counterfeit medicines,” Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said on Twitter, while congratulating the officers who carried out the raid.
The raid was the result of an investigation that began in January this year, following a complaint from Sun Pharma, when authorities recovered counterfeit drugs worth one million rupees ($12,083), the health ministry said.
($1 = 82.7590 Indian Rupees)
(Reporting by Shilpa Jamkhandikar; Editing by Christina Fincher)
