Maharashtra introduces handheld counterfeit-drug detection devices across its government health system

Key facts

• The Maharashtra government has purchased eight handheld counterfeit-drug detection machines, each worth ₹1.2 crore, to verify the quality of medicines distributed through its health system and prevent spurious tablets, syrups and injections from reaching patients.
• Maharashtra is the first state to introduce this technology, which is used by about 50 countries globally for monitoring drug quality.
• Eight flying squads, each equipped with one device and consisting of a qualified pharmacist and a trained government official, will conduct monthly random testing at government health facilities including district and women's hospitals.
• The devices will be used only for preliminary testing, with action against manufacturers or officials taken only after samples are verified at 12 NABL-recognised testing laboratories.
• Rajasthan is in the process of ordering 116 devices after spurious Oxytocin injections claimed the lives of pregnant women in July, while Madhya Pradesh is expected to take 10 devices and Jammu and Kashmir four devices.
• Maharashtra health minister Prakash Abitkar said the health department will identify spurious drugs in its system and forward them to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the authority responsible for pharmaceutical regulatory enforcement.