Hyderabad: The Telangana Drug Control Administration (TGDCA) has issued an immediate halt on the sale and use of two cough syrups, Relife and Respifresh TR, after laboratory tests confirmed contamination with the highly toxic chemical Diethylene Glycol (DEG). DEG, a dangerous industrial solvent, must never be present in medicines due to its severe toxicity and critical risk of kidney failure.
The specific batches flagged are – Relife Cough Syrup (Batch No. LSL25160), manufactured by Shape Pharma, Gujarat; Respifresh TR Cough Syrup (Batch No. R01GL2523), manufactured by Rednex Pharmaceuticals, Gujarat.
The alert was triggered by the Drug Testing Laboratory in Madhya Pradesh, which first detected the DEG contamination. The TGDCA has now instructed all retailers, wholesalers, distributors, and hospitals to immediately freeze and return any stocks of these specific batches.
The cough syrup Coldrif has been linked to the deaths of at least 20 children in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, triggering a ban across several states, including Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, and Madhya Pradesh itself. Coldrif was found to contain deadly levels of DEG produced by Sresan Pharmaceuticals based in Tamil Nadu’s Kancheepuram district.
Telangana’s advisory on Relife and Respifresh TR syrups is part of a broader national alarm on toxic cough syrups linked to fatal poisonings. The Coldrif syrup incident has highlighted systemic failures in pharmaceutical regulation, resulting in multiple state bans, criminal investigations, and calls for accountability in India’s drug manufacturing sector.
