The expert committee, constituted by the Appellate Authority in Andhra Pradesh to go into the allegations that the pharmaceutical companies are manufacturing several products without environmental clearance from the Andhra Pradesh Pollution Control Board (APPCB), has found the allegations to be true as the committee has revealed that several pharma companies are flouting environment rules to manufacture several products.

The committee has revealed that samples containing 74 drugs collected from 15 pharmaceutical units in the state do not have consent from APPCB. The expert committee was constituted by the Appellate Authority on a petition filed by Maa Telangana Party chief Veera Reddy in the court stating that the pharma units in the state were producing huge number of unauthorized drugs which are polluting the environment.

The experts committee visited 18 bulk drug units from May 4-17, 2012.

All the units facing allegations were given prior notice. The 18 industrial units had been notified that the Committee would make a visit in the first week of May after it had been asked by the Appellate Authority in March to submit a report within eight weeks seeking information from the units on the products they were manufacturing, quantities and other facts. The Committee’s letters also established why they were visiting and the procedure they would adopt to conduct the investigation.

Maa Telangana Party chief Veera Reddy, who first took up the issue, pointed out that if such a huge number of unauthorized drugs were being manufactured blatantly despite the units being forewarned of a visit, one could well imagine the scale at which such practices must have been going on all these years. These units bore no accountability on issues, such as pollution, in the manufacture of these unauthorized drugs, Reddy said.

Hetero Drugs Limited, Unit 4, which was visited on May 7, had consent for manufacturing 16 of the products, but it was found to be manufacturing 27 products that did not have consent. The Unit has applied for Consent for Establishment for a new product mix. Unit 1 of the same company, with permission for 30 products, was also producing 17 others without such permission.

Similarly, SMS Pharmaceuticals, having permission to make three products, is actually making nine that are not among those allowed by the APPCB. Cirex Pharmaceuticals was found to be producing an equal number of unauthorised products (13) as the authorised ones. Aurobindo Pharma was found to be producing 20 products in excess of the permitted 40.