K M Dayashankar
DCA and Prohibition and Excise officials conducts joint operation
HYDERABAD, JULY 24, 2024: Officials of Drugs Control Administration (DCA) Telangana in a joint operation with the Prohibition and Excise department busted a godown storing illegally manufactured and stocked bulk drugs (active pharmaceutical ingredients) in Muduchintalpally of Medchal-Malkajgiril district.
The godown belongs to Aspen Biopharma and arrested Kadari Sateesh Reddy, a habitual offender in several cases with DCA. The officials seized stocks of drugs including anti-cancer, anti-viral, anti-fungal, anticoagulants, antidepressants and others worth Rs 96 lakhs.
In a statement here on Wednesday, DCA director-general VB Kamalasan Rededy said following credible information, a joint operation was carried out by the DCA officials of the Shameerpet Zone and the Prohibition and Excise Department officials. During the raid, large stocks of bulk drugs (Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients) of various categories, including anticancer, antiviral, antifungal, anticoagulants, antidepressants, etc., which were illegally manufactured, were found stocked at the godown belonging to Aspen Biopharma Pvt. Ltd.
The details of the stocks of Bulk Drugs (APIs) detected:
| 1. Sertraline Hydrochloride (Qty: 350.0 Kg) |
| 2. Misoprostol (Qty: 352.5 Kg) |
| 3. Darifenacin (Qty: 1.5 Kg) |
| 4. Heparin sodium (Qty: 1.3 Kg) |
| 5. Amisulpride (Qty: 9.0 Kg) |
| 6. Pazopanib (Qty: 2.5 Kg) |
| 7. Palbociclib (Qty: 1.5 Kg) |
| 8. Nilotinib (Qty: 3.2 Kg) |
| 9. Losartan (Qty: 2.0 Kg) |
| 10. Terazosin (Qty: 6.5 Kg) |
| 11. Sertaconazole (Qty: 4.5 Kg) |
| 12. Posoconazole (Qty: 1.4 Kg) |
| 13. Darunavir (Qty: 0.5 Kg) |
| 14. Ropinirole (Qty: 0.6 Kg) |
| 15. Daptomycin (Qty: 0.8 Kg) |
| 16. Ibrutinib (Qty: 0.6 Kg) |
| 17. Tenofovir (Qty: 1.5 Kg) |
| 18. Abiraterone (Qty: 8.0 Kg) |
| 19. Docetaxel (Qty: 0.9 Kg) |
| 20. Gemcitabine (Qty: 0.9 Kg) |
| 21. Levetiracetam (Qty: 6.0 Kg) |
| 22. Ritonavir (Qty: 0.7 Kg) |
| 23. Rivastigmine Tartrate (Qty: 8.92 Kg) |
The godown, operating illegally without any drug license, belongs to Kadari Sateesh Reddy of Aspen Biopharma, who is the prime accused in the spurious anti-cancer drugs case detected at Machabollaram in December 2023. He is also the key conspirator in the illicit manufacturing of APIs at Annarugudem Village, Tallada Mandal, Khammam District, which was detected in the same month.
The stocks of Bulk Drugs/APIs present in the godown are in LDPE bags and only bear the name of the bulk drug. Certain stocks bear only code names of the APIs. The batch details and the details of the manufacturer are not indicated on the API stocks found, indicating unlicensed manufacturing of the APIs.
Officers from Drugs Control Administration Anjum Abida, Assistant Director, Shameerpet, B. Praveen, Drugs Inspector, Shameerpet, Dr. B. Lakshmi Narayana, Drugs Inspector, Uppal, and P. Ambedkar, Drugs Inspector, Medipally & Officers from Prohibition and Excise Department viz. Bharat Bhushan, Excise Inspector and Naveen, Excise Sub-Inspector and their staff are among the officers who carried out the raid.
The public may report any suspected manufacturing activity related to drugs, including narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances, in residential, commercial, or industrial areas, as well as any other complaints regarding illegal activities concerning medicines, through the Drugs Control Administration, Telangana Toll-Free Number 1800-599-6969, which is operational from 10:30 am
