Artemisinin, the drug used as monotherapy to treat multi-drug resistant strains of falciparum malaria, will no longer be in the Indian market after some time as a decision to discontinue its use has already been taken.

The 39th Drugs Consultative Committee (DCC), which held in New Delhi on December 10, unanimously decided to phase out the Oral Single Drug Formulations (OSDF) of artemisinin and its derivatives from the Indian market.

The DCC has set up a sub-committee to lay down the norms by which this class of anti-malarial drugs known as artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACTs) should be weeded out from the market.

The Drug Controllers meeting also set a time limit of six months for the sub-committee to submit its report.

ACTs were in the market as they had been approved by various international health organizations such as the WHO and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) as the first-line treatment for malaria in Africa.

The DCC held discussion on this because of the recommendations of World Health Organisation. In the next DCC, which is to be held after three months, will again deliberate on this crucial issue.