MP cough syrup horror: Death toll rises to 13 in Chhindwara as another toddler succumbs in Nagpur

Chhindwara/Nagpur: In a heart-wrenching escalation of Madhya Pradesh’s ongoing public health crisis, one-and-a-half-year-old Dhani Dehariya from Junapani village in Tamia tehsil breathed her last at Nagpur’s Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH), succumbing to acute renal failure triggered by the contaminated Coldrif cough syrup.

“This marks the 13th confirmed child fatality,” Naresh Gonnade, Chief Medical Health Officer of Chhindwara district, told IANS.

However, he remained tight-lipped when asked if the death was linked to the toxic elixir, which has cast a shadow over the tribal heartland of Chhindwara district, claiming young lives aged between one and eight years.

However, the state government has not declared the exact number of deaths linked to toxic cough syrup.

Dhani, a frail girl battling a persistent cough and cold, who, according to her parents, was prescribed the “deadly” syrup by Praveen Soni during a consultation at his private clinic in Parasia just days before her condition deteriorated.

Dhani’s desperate parents rushed her to the local community health centre on September 26 after she exhibited symptoms of severe dehydration and oliguria – hallmarks of kidney shutdown.

“She was under treatment at Nagpur Medical College and died Monday night,” the CMHO said.

Transferred to GMCH-Nagpur amid suspicions of poisoning, the toddler fought valiantly for 11 days on dialysis and ventilator support, but succumbed to multi-organ failure, a doctor from Nagpur told IANS on condition of anonymity.

Authorities confirmed the syrup’s role through toxicology reports, revealing diethylene glycol (DEG) – a lethal industrial solvent used in brake fluids and antifreeze – at 48.6 per cent concentration in the batch, far exceeding safe limits.

Soni, a government paediatrician at CHC Parasia moonlighting in private practice, has been in police custody since his arrest on October 5 under Sections 105 and 276 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for culpable homicide and drug adulteration.

An FIR at Parasia station also implicates Sresan Pharmaceuticals in Kanchipuram, Tamil Nadu, which has been blacklisted nationwide.

Lab tests from Bhopal’s Drug Testing Laboratory corroborated the contamination, prompting Madhya Pradesh to ban all Sresan products and seize stockpiles.

Three more cough syrups were flagged Monday for similar DEG traces, broadening the probe.

The saga echoes a darker history, reminiscent of the 1986 Mumbai hospital tragedy, where contaminated syrup killed 14 children.

Over the past month, since late August, 16 prior victims – mostly from Parasia and Tamia blocks – perished similarly, with ten treated in Nagpur alone.

Six more children linger in critical care at GMCH and private facilities, three on ventilators, their tiny frames ravaged by tubular kidney injury confirmed via biopsies.

Chief Minister Mohan Yadav has announced Rs 4 lakh ex-gratia per family and free treatment for survivors, vowing a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to unearth supply chain lapses.

“This is unforgivable negligence; no child should pay with their life for substandard drugs,” he thundered.

In response, the state suspended two drug inspectors, a deputy director, and transferred the drug controller, while Maharashtra and Punjab imposed preemptive bans on Coldrif.

The Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) has launched raids across six states, alerting practitioners to shun paediatric syrups under five years. Telangana’s Drugs Control echoed the warning after linking three Rajasthan deaths to the same scourge.

IANS