The Uttarakhand Food Safety and Drug Administration Department seized a large quantity of suspected counterfeit medicines, packaging materials and equipment allegedly used for manufacturing and packaging of medicines during a raid on a house in Dehradun’s East Hope Town area on Wednesday, police said.
The operation was conducted in coordination with the Uttar Pradesh Narcotics Control Department and local police as part of the investigation into an alleged inter-state counterfeit medicines network.
Officers said initial investigations indicated possible links to an interstate network, and further investigations were underway to identify those involved in the alleged extortion.
The raid was carried out on a house in Devipur village in Barwal area of East Hope Town following information received by the administration. During the inspection, officers found medicines bearing the names of reputable pharmaceutical companies, as well as packaging materials and machinery allegedly used in their manufacture.
The seized stock included medicines bearing the names of companies such as Intas, MacLeods and Dr Reddy’s. Among the drugs recovered were Gababin 100, Zoril M2 and Cevolac 200, officers said.
According to officers, the homeowner said that some rooms in the building were rented out. Officers said documents and other materials recovered from the building were being examined as part of the investigation.
Chief Narcotics Inspector Manendra Singh Rana and Narcotics Inspector Vinod Jagode have initiated legal proceedings in the case, while the suspects are being interrogated, officers said.
After a preliminary investigation revealed links with other states, Uttarakhand is coordinating with the Narcotics Control Department in Uttar Pradesh to trace the wider network and identify the source and distribution chain of the suspected counterfeit drugs.
Additional Commissioner Tajbar Singh Jaggi said that efforts to combat counterfeit medicines are being strengthened through increased coordination between anti-drug authorities of different states. He said that decisions in this regard were taken at the recent All India Drug Controllers’ Meeting held in the Union Territory of Daman and Diu.
“The strategy includes regular exchange of information about suspicious activities, counterfeit drug networks and accused persons between anti-drug authorities. This coordination aims to enable agencies to act quickly against networks operating across state borders,” he said.
