Interstate gang circulating spurious codeine syrup: Girish Bapat

Minister for Food and Civil Supplies and FDA Girish Bapat has revealed that an interstate gang was operating to circulate spurious cough syrup, containing codeine phosphate for being used as an addictive drug. Bapat said that the state government would bring in a separate legislation, if required, to impose more stringent punishment for such crimes.

Bapat was responding to a motion in the state assembly moved by leader of Opposition Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patil, Kalidas Kolambkar, Vijay Vadettiwar, Amin Patel, Aslam Shaikh, Sardar Tara Singh, Abu Azmi, Yogesh Sagar and others. He said that the spurious syrup was brought to Maharashtra from states like West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh and Uttarakhand. Bapat added that the state government has been pursuing the issue with the Union government to impose MCOCA and MPDA provisions against such offenders.

Bapat added that FDA officials had trapped peddler Dalaram Chaudhary and seized 14,000 bottles of spurious syrup last month. Dalaram was jailed for a month before getting bail. Bapat added that the main suspect and kingpin Bharat Chaudhary is still absconding. Their accomplices Shaikh Rehman and Babu Bhatti were arrested, but later got bail from court.

The minister added that he was insisting on imposing sections of the IPC to make such offences non-bailable and increasing imprisonment to ten years from seven years. He added that the state government has approached the Union home minister as well as the president for making provisions to impose MPDA and COCA for offenders in these cases. Bapat added that in addition to increasing state-of-the-art laboratories for testing, increasing vehicles and staff for the FDA his department was also keeping an eye on the tendency of mixing Ayurvedic medicines with allopathic medicines, which are used for addictive drugs.

Bapat added that the FDA has started special squads to raid toilet blocks, malls and theatres near colleges to nab college youth, involved in use of cough syrup and other such spurious liquids like addictive drugs. He added that the toilet blocks, hostels, lodes and malls near colleges up to five kilometers are being searched by the special squads.

Bapat added that his department would also take action against medical shops, selling cough syrups without prescription. He said that he would also check the online sale of such syrups by checking whether online prescription copies are being sent to the shop or not. He added that action would be taken against shops selling such syrups without prescription.