Cough Syrup Deaths: MP Police arrest pharma owner from Tamil Nadu

The Madhya Pradesh Police on Thursday arrested the owner of a Tamil Nadu-based pharmaceutical company linked to the deaths of 20 children after consuming contaminated cough syrup.S. Ranganathan, the owner of the company that manufactured Coldrif cough syrup, was taken into custody in Tamil Nadu and  the police has approached the Court to seek a transit remand to bring him to Chhindwara, Madhya Pradesh, for further investigation,according to information.
Madhya Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Rajendra Shukla said on Tuesday that 20 children from the state have died so far while undergoing treatment for kidney failure after consuming the toxic cough syrup. Five other children remain under treatment in Nagpur  two each at the Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) and the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), and one in a private hospital.Earlier, the state government had confirmed the deaths of 16 children from Chhindwara who had allegedly consumed Coldrif syrup, samples of which were found to contain toxic substances. Around 600 bottles of the syrup were reportedly distributed in Chhindwara, of which 443 have already been recovered.
To prevent further tragedies, Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHA) and Anganwadi workers have been directed to conduct door-to-door inspections and collect any remaining bottles from households.Authorities have intensified the probe into the source and distribution network of the contaminated cough syrup, with further arrests and regulatory action likely in the coming days.