 "Why Coldrif cough syrup, linked to over dozen children deaths in MP, Rajasthan, is dangerous")
The ‘Coldrif’ cough syrup has come into the scanner after several deaths in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan were linked to the medicine. The Centre on Sunday (October 5) held a high-level virtual meeting with health secretaries from all states and Union Territories (UTs), calling for urgent action to protect health.
Many states, including Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra, have banned the sale of the cough syrup. As the medicine comes under the scanner, we take a look at what’s happening.
Coldrif deaths in MP, Rajasthan
Deaths due to adulterated cough syrups were first reported in early September in Madhya Pradesh’s Chhindwara district. Within a fortnight, six children, all suffering from cough and cold, below five years died of kidney failure.
A total of 16 children in MP, including 14 in Chhindwara and two in Betul, died after taking the cough syrup. Two fatalities were also recorded in Rajasthan, one each in Bharatpur and Sikar.
A biopsy of the kidney found the presence of the toxic chemical diethylene glycol. Many of the children were prescribed Coldrif and Nextro-DS syrups, as per NDTV.
Speaking to the TV channel, the father of one of the victims said his son began vomiting after he was administered the cough syrup, recommended by Dr Praveen Soni, who has now been arrested for negligence. “After he gave him the syrup, he started throwing up. Then he stopped urinating. We later found it was a kidney infection and took him to Nagpur. He died there.”
The father of another victim shared a similar tale with NDTV. The children showed similar symptoms: vomiting and no urination, which led to a diagnosis of an acute kidney infection that eventually claimed their lives.
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More ShortsWhy was Coldrif found to be dangerous?
A batch of ‘Coldrif’ cough syrup collected from its Tamil Nadu manufacturing unit was found to contain diethylene glycol (DEG) beyond permissible limits.
On the Madhya Pradesh government’s request, the Tamil Nadu Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had collected samples of the cough syrup from the manufacturing site, Sresan Pharma in Kanchipuram, revealing contamination with DEG above safety limits.
Six samples taken by the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) from Madhya Pradesh’s Chhindwara were, however, not found to contain DEG and ethylene glycol (EG).
Ethylene glycol is a colourless and odourless alcoholic compound that can be fatal if consumed. The sweet-tasting ethylene glycol is a syrupy or viscous liquid at room temperature.
Diethylene glycol and ethylene glycol are adulterants that are sometimes illegally used as solvents in liquid drugs. They could be used by pharma companies as an alternative to non-toxic solvents such as glycerine or propylene glycol to cut costs.
The ingestion of ethylene glycol can cause severe health effects. As per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), central nervous system depression, nausea, vomiting, intoxication, euphoria, stupor, respiratory depression, and reduced excretion of urine can occur due to ethylene glycol intoxication. “Severe toxicity may result in coma, loss of reflexes, seizures (uncommon), and irritation of the tissues lining the brain,” the CDC adds.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has repeatedly warned of cough syrups contaminated with DEG and EG. These adulterants have been linked to more than 300 child deaths globally since 2022.
The United States has not reported deaths due to DEG contamination since 1937, when it claimed 105 lives. However, India has not been successful in saving lives from such poisoning. In 2020 alone, 12 children died in Jammu and Kashmir after taking adulterated cough syrups.
Three years ago, Uzbekistan reported 68 fatalities linked to contaminated cough syrups produced by India’s Marion Biotech. In 2022, the deaths of nearly 70 children in The Gambia were also blamed on cough syrups made in India.
Centre, states take action
The Centre and states have jumped into action after fatalities due to contaminated cough syrups were reported in MP and Rajasthan in the past few weeks.
The Central government has called for risk-based inspections at 19 drug manufacturing sites across six states to expose lapses in quality control. A multidisciplinary team is probing the cause of child deaths reported in and around Chhindwara.
CDSCO is also planning to write to the Tamil Nadu Food and Drug Administration (FDA), urging stringent measures against the Coldrif manufacturer.
“CDSCO to write to Tamil Nadu-FDA to take strictest action against ‘Coldrif’ Syrup Manufacturer Sresan Pharmaceuticals,” official sources to ANI.
MP police have registered a criminal case against the manufacturer, Sresan Pharma, and a local doctor.
“The doctor who wrote the prescription has been arrested,” Rajendra Shukla, MP deputy chief minister, told ANI.
The company is facing charges of culpable homicide not amounting to murder, adulteration of drugs, and manufacturing, selling, or distributing cosmetics in violation of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act.
#WATCH | Chhindwara, Madhya Pradesh: The Drugs Department raided an Ayush firm in Chhindwara after 10 children died from Coldrif Cough syrup. pic.twitter.com/VRupAGtxUr
— ANI (@ANI) October 5, 2025
Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra are among the states to have banned the Coldrif cough syrup. Kerala has also suspended the sale of the cough syrup.
The Telangana government has directed all District Medical and Health Officers (DM&HOs) to sensitise the public on the ‘alert’ concerning the medicine.
Meanwhile, the Union Health Ministry has called for the “rational use” of cough syrups for children, recommending “judicious prescribing and dispensing” in an advisory. It pointed out that most illnesses causing coughs clear up without the use of drugs.
With inputs from agencies
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