BHOPAL: Authorities in Madhya Pradesh have arrested a doctor in Chhindwara following the deaths of 11 children who reportedly consumed contaminated cough syrup. The doctor, identified as Praveen Soni, is said to have prescribed the Coldrif syrup to the children, most of whom were treated at his clinic in Parasia. Police have also booked the manufacturers of the pharmaceutical company based in Tamil Nadu over the alleged contamination.‘FIR registered at 2.05 am’Madhya Pradesh police early on Sunday registered an FIR in Parasia police station of Chhindwara district against Sresan Pharmaceuticals, a Tamil Nadu-based drug manufacturer and a local paediatrician after 11 children died of acute kidney failure allegedly caused by consumption of Coldrif cough syrup adulterated with a toxic industrial chemical. The FIR was registered at 2.05 am on Sunday.The FIR was lodged under Sections 105 and 276 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Section 27(a) of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940, following a complaint filed by Dr Ankit Sahlam, Block Medical Officer (BMO) at the Community Health Centre, Parasia. The complaint stated that several children below five years of age died after being administered the cough syrup, which was later found to contain diethylene glycol (DEG) — a poisonous chemical used in antifreeze and brake fluids.According to the FIR, the Director of Drugs Control, Tamil Nadu, in its laboratory report dated October 2, 2025, confirmed that Coldrif Syrup (Batch No. SR-13, Mfg. May 2025, Exp. Apr 2027), manufactured by Sresan Pharmaceuticals, Kanchipuram, contained 48.6% diethylene glycol, while a separate test by the govt Drug Testing Laboratory, Bhopal, found 46.28% of the same toxic compound. Both reports declared the samples “adulterated and injurious to health.”The complaint detailed how the children — all below the age of five — were treated for cold, cough, and fever by Praveen Soni, a govt paediatrician posted at CHC Parasia. Within days, they developed reduced urine output and elevated creatinine and urea levels, symptoms consistent with acute kidney injury. Ten of them later died during treatment at Nagpur’s Government Medical College and Hospital.Those named in the FIR include the directors of Sresan Pharmaceuticals, Dr Praveen Soni of Parasia, and “other responsible persons” involved in the manufacturing and supply of the contaminated syrup.The FIR cites medical records and laboratory findings that confirm acute tubular injury in one of the victims, four-year-old Vikas Yaduvanshi, whose kidney biopsy was conducted at GMC Nagpur.Investigators said that six more children remain hospitalised in Nagpur with kidney complications. Officials added that similar instructions to lodge an FIR had been issued to the Drug Inspector in Jabalpur, though no case was registered there as of now.‘Contained a poisonous industrial chemical’A laboratory test report of Coldrif — the cough medicine taken by some of the victims — revealed it contained a poisonous industrial chemical, prompting the state to ban its sale. The report, received by the MP government from the Tamil Nadu Drugs Control Department on Saturday, said the sample tested was “found adulterated, since it contains 48.6% diethylene glycol”. DEG, used in anti-freeze and brake fluids, is known to cause acute kidney failure and death when ingested. The state government immediately ordered a crackdown on Coldrif, manufactured by TN-based Sresan Pharmaceuticals, with the Food and Drugs Administration issuing urgent instructions to all drug inspectors to seize existing stocks, prevent further sales, and draw samples from other batches for testing. The government also extended the prohibition to all other medicines made by the pharma company. MP chief minister Mohan Yadav, in an X post, said, “Death of children in Chhindwara caused by Coldrif syrup is extremely painful.” Late Saturday evening, he announced a compensation of Rs 4 lakh for the families of each of the deceased children. The state government would also bear the cost of treatment for the children still under care, Yadav said. The cough-syrup-linked deaths in MP and Rajasthan have sounded alarm bells across the country, with several states announcing probes and taking precautionary measures. The Central Drug Standards Control Organisation has initiated risk-based inspection of drug manufacturing units in six states — Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, MP, and Maharashtra. The inspections are focused on companies manufacturing cough syrups, antipyretics, and antibiotics, samples of which were picked up by drug regulatory authorities from regions where fatalities were reported. The deaths in Chhindwara have taken place over a period of one month. All the children were aged below five years, and renal failure was reportedly caused after taking cough syrups, including Coldrif, prescribed by local doctors at private clinics. Five children are recuperating at Government Medical College & Hospital in Nagpur. The deaths, first reported in late August, were largely concentrated in villages in Parasia tehsil of Chhindwara. The children initially showed symptoms of cold and mild fever and were treated with cough syrups and routine medicines. However, their condition worsened with reduced urine output and acute kidney complications.
