India’s financial crime-fighting agency has launched searches at seven locations linked to Sresan Pharma, the manufacturer of a cough syrup tied to the deaths of at least 19 children in the central state of Madhya Pradesh, according to a source familiar with the investigation.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted the raids in Chennai, the capital of Tamil Nadu, on suspicion of money laundering, the source told Reuters on Monday. The operation reportedly includes searches of residences belonging to senior officials of the state’s drug control department.
The investigation follows a nationwide outcry after laboratory tests earlier this month found that samples of Sresan Pharma’s cough syrup, branded Coldrif, contained dangerously high levels of diethylene glycol — a toxic chemical often used in industrial applications such as antifreeze. The concentration was said to be nearly 500 times the permissible limit.
Authorities banned the syrup after confirming the contamination, which has been linked to the deaths of 19 children in Madhya Pradesh over the past month. The company’s owner, G. Ranganathan, was arrested last week but has not responded to media inquiries.
India, often described as the “pharmacy of the world,” supplies roughly 40% of generic medicines used in the United States and more than 90% of pharmaceuticals in several African nations. However, recent tragedies have cast a spotlight on the country’s drug manufacturing and regulatory standards.
Under Indian law, drug manufacturers are required to test both raw materials and finished products for safety. Since 2023, cough syrup exports must also undergo additional testing at government-approved laboratories, following incidents in which more than a dozen children died in Cameroon, Gambia, and Uzbekistan after consuming contaminated Indian-made syrups.
In this case, however, Coldrif was sold only within India, raising fresh questions about domestic oversight. The World Health Organization (WHO) last week pointed to a “regulatory gap” in India’s testing procedures for medicines sold locally, warning that greater vigilance was needed to prevent further tragedies.
Authorities have since stepped up inspections of pharmaceutical facilities and issued warnings about two additional cough syrups — Respifresh and RELIFE — produced by Gujarat-based Shape Pharma and Rednex Pharmaceuticals. Both products reportedly contain the same toxic compound, diethylene glycol.
Officials from the two companies have not commented publicly, and Reuters reported that attempts to reach them by phone were unsuccessful.
As the investigation widens, the Sresan Pharma case has renewed international scrutiny of India’s pharmaceutical sector — a critical global supplier now under pressure to restore confidence in the safety and quality of its medicines.
