After the Andhra Pradesh Drug Control Authority (APDCA) seized illegal cough syrup worth Rs.9 lakhs last week, in yet another action against substandard drugs, the Andhra Pradesh Medical Services Infrastructure Development Corporation (APMSIDC) has blacklisted 10 pharma firms for supplying substandard medicines.

The APMSIDC has cracked its whip on at least 10 defaulting firms and blacklisted certain products for this month and has banned some other products for a few years for being undependable suppliers.

The firms which were blacklisted as undependable include Dennis Chemicals Ltd, Fair Deal Enterprise, HLL Life Care Science, Mino Pharma Labs Pvt Ltd, Modern Laboratories, Neon Laboratories, Sri Rajendra Pharma, Sterined Medical Services, Rajasthan Drugs and Pharmaceuticals Ltd., and Bharath Serums and Vaccine.

Among the blacklisted pharmaceutical companies, Hindustan Latex Life Care Limited and AP-based Mino Pharma have been found at fault for supplying substandard antibiotics, ciprofloxacin. These firms have failed the quality control test, informed the sources.

It is alleged that all the blacklisted companies have taken the supply order long back but could not meet the deadlines and has even failed in quality test for their products.

J Syamala Rao, managing director of APMSIDC is working tirelessly towards cleaning up the entire system. Earlier he had even devised the concept of Jeevandhara generic outlets for supplying low cost subsidized medicines for the poor.

In a similar case earlier, the APMSIDC had blacklisted products manufactured by nine pharmaceutical companies that were found to be sub-standard, which otherwise would have landed up in government hospitals.

Taking a dig at the defaulting firms the MD said, “We will not spare anyone who is at fault. We have already issued show cause notices to 10 companies who took purchase order but didn’t supply the ordered quantity in time. Two (other) companies had supplied substandard drugs and the products (ciprofloxacin), which failed the quality control test, have been banned as well.”

The APMSIDC is also planning to issue show cause notices to three other companies for not supplying standard drugs. Many firms are failing the quality test time and again. In view of this the MD seems to be taking a serious note. “Companies whose products are rejected thrice by us would be permanently banned. They cannot participate in the tender process in future,” said the MD.