The Bihar police have detained a suspected Chinese woman in Bodh Gaya in connection with alleged threat to Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama and are interrogating her, JS Gangwar, ADG (headquarters) confirmed to ANI.
The ADG (headquarters) said that she had been detained in connection with the alleged threat to Dalai Lama. “Police detained the suspected (Chinese) woman in Bodh Gaya in connection with an alleged threat to Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama. She is being interrogated,” he said.
Earlier in the morning, a security alert was sounded in Bodh Gaya district where the Dalai Lama is scheduled to participate in public discourses after intelligence agencies alerted local police about a Chinese woman’s presence and suspected activities.
The security agencies released the sketch of the suspected woman and started searching for the Chinese woman in Gaya, suspected of spying on Dalai Lama.
Gaya Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Harpreet Kaur said, “Local police has received inputs about a Chinese woman who has been living in Gaya. We were getting inputs on her for the last two years. In view of this, an alert has been given and searches are underway.”
“There is no information at present about the location of the Chinese woman. We cannot rule out suspicion of her being a Chinese spy,” SSP Kaur said.
According to inputs, the suspected Chinese spy had been living in different parts of the country including Bodh Gaya for more than one year.
However, there is no record in the foreign section about the stay of the Chinese woman. The Dalai Lama has this year resumed his annual tour to Bodh Gaya, which had been suspended for the last two years due to the Covid pandemic.
(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)
To address the issue of low voter turnout due to voters not living in their constituencies due to various reasons like work, study etc, the Election Commission of India has proposed to introduce a remote voting facility for such outstation voters. The ECI has developed a new Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) for remote voting, based on the currently used EVM, and is ready for a pilot project on this.
Stressing the need for such a remote voting system, ECI said that on average, one-third of registered voters do not vote in an election, and it is a matter of grave concern. It said that the Election Commission of India is committed to its goal of ‘No voter to be left behind’.
The ECI has invited all registered political parties for a demonstration of how the proposed Remote Electronic Voting Machine (RVM) will work. The commission has also sought suggestions and feedback from the parties on the issue.
In a statement issued today, the ECI said that inability to vote due to internal migration (domestic migrants) is one of the prominent reasons of lower voting in elections, and it has to be addressed to improve voter turnout and ensure participative elections. According to the statement, soon after assuming office as Chief Election Commissioner, Rajiv Kumar focused his attention on enabling the migrant voters to exercise their franchise from their current place of residence.
However, as such a measure involved a host of issues including egal, statutory, administrative and technological interventions, ECI deliberated on them at length to come up with a solution. After studying various alternatives, the Commission has decided on the Remote Electronic Voting Machine, which is a modified version of the time-tested model of M3 EVM.
Using this RVM, people not living in their constituencies will be able to vote from their current place of living. This modified EVM can handle elections for up to 72 multiple constituencies from a single remote polling booth. “The initiative, if implemented, can lead to a social transformation for the migrants and connect with their roots as many times they are reluctant to get themselves enrolled at their place of work for various reasons such as frequently changing residences, not enough social and emotional connect with the issues of area of migration, unwillingness to get their name deleted in electoral roll of their home/native constituencies as they have permanent residence/property etc,” the ECI statement said.
The Election Commission of India has also distributed a concept note on the RVM among the political partis, which describes the working of the voting machines and the procedure of remote voting.
Just like the regular EVMs, RVMs are also standalone, non-networked voting machines, they do not have any network interface and can’t be connected to any network. It is one of the main security features of the Indian EVMs, as it makes any remote manipulation of EVMs impossible. However, there will be several changes in the RVMs from the EVMs.
While EVMs are used for voting in a single constituency, RVMs can run elections for several constituencies, up to 72. As this means hundreds of candidates in each polling booth, RVMs do not have paper ballots affixed to it. Instead, there will be a digital display of the names and symbols of the candidates, which will change based on the constituency chosen.
A Remote Electronic Voting Machine will consist of the following parts:
Remote Control Unit (RCU), which is the same as the existing Control Unit, except that the RCU can store the Constituency wise result of total number of votes for each candidate.
Remote Ballot Unit (RBU) which is the voting unit but includes an electronic dynamic display instead of a fixed ballot paper sheet. The RBU dynamically displays the list of candidates for the selected constituency.
Apart from the digital ballot paper, the system will also include a public display, an external display to show the list of the candidates for the selection constituency. Both the RBU and the Public Display will show the same list after the constituency number is selected.
RVVPAT, which is a modified version of VVPAT with the ability to store and print names of constituencies and the image of candidates.
Remote Symbol Loading unit (RSLU) to capture details of the candidates like names and symbols from various constituencies from the computer system of the home returning officer.
Constituency Card Reader (CCR) will be used in the system to select the desired constituency. It is a barcode reader which reads the constituency number of a voter coming to the remote polling booth.
Public display control unit (PDCU) is the interface between CCR, Public display and RBU. After getting the constituency number read by the CCR, it displays the list of candidates for that constituency both on the RBU and the public display.
The electronic ballot will be an exact replica of the ballot paper used in the home constituency, and it will be based on the ballot paper finalised to be affixed on the EVMs. After finalisation, the home Returning Officer will forward the data to the remote RO, and the RO will load all data from the remote constituencies into the Remote Symbol Loading unit.
Block diagram of Remote Electronic Voting Machine
For remote voting, a remote voter has to pre-register for this facility by applying online or offline during a specified time period. After verification of the details, the voter will be marked as a remote voter in a remote location. Special multi-constituency remote voting polling stations will be set up in the places of their current residence.
On the polling day, when the voter goes to the remote voting station, the presiding officer will scan the relevant constituency card using the CCR, and the system will display the candidates for that constituency on the Public Display Unit and also on the RBU. The voter will then cast the vote on the RBU, in the same manner as voting on regular EVM. The vote is recorded along with the state code, constituency number, and candidate number. The RVVPAT prints the state and constituency codes along with the candidate name, symbol, and serial number.
During counting, the votes in a Remote Control Unit will be counted the same as regular Control Unit votes are counted. The RCU displays the total votes for each Constituency, one by one, in sequential order of candidates in that constituency. The results for each constituency will be sent to the home constituency, where they will be added to the tally of each candidate.
The ECI will demonstrate the working of the Remote Electronic Voting Machine on 16 January 2023 at an event to be held at Vigyan Bhavan in New Delhi. The Commission has invited all recognised 8 National and 57 State Political Parties for the demonstration and discussion, where Technical Expert Committee members will also be present.
The ECI has asked the parties to submit written views by 31 January 2023 on various related issues including changes required in legislation, changes in administrative procedures and voting method/RVM/technology, if any other, for the domestic migrants. Based on the feedback received from the political parties, the Commission will carry forward the process of implementing remote voting method.
While the technical design of the Remote EVM has been prepared by the ECI, there are a host of legal issues that need to be addressed before it can be implemented. Some issues include the definition of migrant voter, definition of remote voting, implementation of model code of conduct in the remote voting station etc.
On December 22, the second song of Shah Rukh Khan and Deepika Padukone starrer Pathaan was released by Yash Raj Film. Titled ‘Jhoome Jo Pathan’, it stirred controversy soon after its release. Many social media users accused music composers Vishal Dadlani and Shekhar Ravjiani (Sheykhar) of stealing the music from a 2012 composition from UTV Films’ Arjun: The Warrior Prince’s song ‘Karam Ki Talvaar’. The two songs have uncanny similarities that led to the belief that the music composers copied the old song.
Netizens accuse Vishal-Shekhar for ‘stealing music’
Twitter user Rachna questioned the film-makers if anything was original in the movie.
The music of ‘Karam Ki Talwar’ was also composed by Vishal-Shekhar
When we checked the details of the 2012 film, it turned out that the music for that animation film was also composed by Vishal-Shekhar. The music composer duo seems to have repackaged their own work it in the song ‘Jhoome Jo Pathan’. However, neither Vishal-Shekhar nor the Pathaan team has clarified the matter.
Pathaan stirring controversies
This is not the first time SRK’s upcoming film has stirred controversy. When the first song of the movie ‘Besharam Rang’ was released on December 12, it received backlash from many organisations over the overt sexualisation and nudity depicted in the video. Some Hindu organisations objected to the ‘Saffron bikini’ that Deepika is seen wearing. The controversy led to multiple complaints, after which the Censor board asked the filmmakers to make ‘certain changes‘ before the theatre release of the movie.
A case of physical abuse of a young woman and love jihad has come up in Greater Noida. The accused lured the young woman by telling her the wrong name. The man named Intezaar Khan gave the woman a job as a manager in his gym, and claimed his name was Sonu at that time. Following this, he raped her on the pretext of marriage.
The accused Intezaar Khan is said to be a resident of Shahberi. According to the information, his father and brother also supported him in this conspiracy. On the complaint of the girl, Noida police arrested the accused along with his father and brother.
The Bisrakh police on Thursday arrested the three accused under section 5(1) of Uttar Pradesh Law Against The Prohibition of Religious Conversion Act. The three are identified as Abbas Ali son of the late Yasin Khan, Intezaar Khan alias Sonu, son of Abbas Ali, and Suhail, son of Abbas Ali.
थाना बिसरख पुलिस द्वारा दुष्कर्म व 5(1)उ0प्र0 विधि विरुद्ध धर्म संपरिवर्तन प्रतिषेध अधिनियम के अभियोग में वांछित 03 अभियुक्त गिरफ्तार। pic.twitter.com/zgsrOaPA1Y
— POLICE COMMISSIONERATE GAUTAM BUDDH NAGAR (@noidapolice) December 29, 2022
थाना बिसरख पुलिस द्वारा दुष्कर्म व 5(1)उ0प्र0 विधि विरुद्ध धर्म संपरिवर्तन प्रतिषेध अधिनियम के अभियोग में वांछित 03 अभियुक्तों की गिरफ्तारी के संबंध में एडीसीपी सेंट्रल नोएडा द्वारा दी गई बाइट। @Uppolice@dgpuppic.twitter.com/l7uI4FXETI
— POLICE COMMISSIONERATE GAUTAM BUDDH NAGAR (@noidapolice) December 29, 2022
The accused are running an ASR gym in the Shahberi area of the local police station, in which the victim was given a job as a manager in June.
The accused, Intezaar Khan lured the victim, while pretending to be Sonu, on the pretext of marriage. His father and brother supported him in his acts, resulting in their arrest as well by the police.
Serbia’s post office has released a special stamp to honour the 75th anniversary of India’s Independence. In a tweet, Indian Embassy in Serbia stated that the special stamp was released in the presence of Serbian first Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic.
Indian Embassy in Serbia noted that the presence of Ivica Dacic underlined the “close relationship” between the two nations. Indian Embassy in Serbia tweeted, “Serbia Post released a special stamp today to honour the 75th Anniversary of our Independence #AzadiKaAmritMahotsav. The presence of the First Deputy PM and Foreign Minister of Serbia @MFASerbia underlined our close friendship @MEAIndia.”
It is pertinent to note here that the Indian government has launched the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav initiative to mark 75 years of independence and the glorious history of the nation’s people, culture and achievements. Notably, the official journey of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav began on March 12 which started a 75-week countdown to the 75th anniversary of independence and will end post a year on 15th August 2023.
Serbia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a tweet also announced publishing a special stamp to honour the 75th anniversary of India’s independence. Serbia’s Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic stressed that the two nations will mark 75 years of diplomatic relations in 2023.
Serbia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs tweeted, “The Post Office of #Serbia released a special stamp today to honour the 75th Anniversary of #India’s independence. DPM/FM #Dacic pointed out that next year Serbia and India celebrate 7[?]5 years of diplomatic relations, which are marked by traditional friendship.”
India and Serbia traditionally have “very good and friendly relations” based on close ties established when the Non-Aligned Movement was founded, Serbia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement. It stated that both nations have similar views on many international issues and a mutual interest in strengthening the political dialogue and improving cooperation in policy areas.
Bilateral economic cooperation between Serbia and India is currently carried out mostly through trade exchange, which is worth 216.56 million euros during 2021, with Serbian exports of 22.40 million euros and imports from India of 194.16 million euros, according to the Serbian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. From January to May 2022, Serbia exported merchandise to India worth 8.21 million euros, and imports from India to Serbia totalled 107.71 million euros.
(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)
After ‘Merry Christmas’ wishes, celebrating the new year has also turned out to be ‘Haraam’. The President of the Islamist organisation Raza Academy has appealed to Muslim youths to avoid hosting or attending New Year’s parties as they are Haraam or against the principles of Islam. He also claimed that the “lewd activities” done in 31st-night parties can put even “Satan to shame”.
In a video message tweeted from the official Twitter handle of Raza Academy, their president Saeed Noori said, “It is regrettable that the 31st night, commonly known as the last night of the year, is the height of shamelessness. I wonder which particular indecent act is not carried out in the guise of celebration at such parties. Such lewd deeds can even put Satan to shame. Such Haraam practices are carried out by people of all faiths and castes and Muslim youths in particular take a keen interest in such Haraam activities.”
Noori went on to urge Muslim parents to ‘rescue’ their children from such shamelessness and stop them from attending such parties.
“We still have time to protect our children from such immorality and shamelessness, and we should stop them from attending such celebrations”, Noori added.
Muslim naujawan 31st Night ke khurafat se mafooz raheiñ Raza Academy ki appeal.
مسلم نوجوان تھرٹی فرسٹ نائٹ کے خرافات سے محفوظ رہیں رضا اکیڈمی کی اپیل.
In another tweet, the Islamist organisation appealed to Muslims to organise prayers and religious events instead of indulging in obscene acts in the name of New Year celebrations.
“Organize Azaan, Ayat-e-Karima reciting and Mehfil-e-Milad on 31st December. Obscene acts performed in the guise of celebration on December 31st are illicit and haram,” the tweet posted by the Academy read.
31 December ko Azaan, Aayat e Karima aur Mehfil e Milaad ka ineqaad kareiñ.
Founded in 1978, Raza Academy has its office in Mumbai. The Islamic outfit was founded to propagate the works of 20th-century Sunni leader Ahmed Raza Khan.
Interestingly, the president of the Islamist outfit, Muhammed Saeed Noori has not received any formal Islamic education.
Raza Academy was also involved in the desecration of the Amar Jawan Jyoti memorial in 2012 during a protest staged by the outfit against the alleged atrocities on Muslims in Myanmar. The violent protestors had even attacked the police officers leaving several injured and public property worth crores was damaged.
In July 2020, Raza Academy compelled the Maha Vikas Aghadi government to write to the Centre, seeking a ban on the online streaming of the Iranian movie ‘Muhammad: The Messenger of God.‘ The film was originally released in Iran in 2015. The outfit had alleged that the film was ‘blasphemous’.
The Maharashtra Police booked five persons including a woman for abusing a 27-year-old woman and gang-raping her in the Bhingaar area of Ahmednagar district. The five accused are Shameen Gafoor Sheikh, Imran Sheikh, Shahanur Sheikh, Akbar Sheikh, and Basheer Khan. The woman named Shameen held the victim down while the other four took turns gang-raping her. All five accused have been booked by the Police under IPC sections 376 (d), 376 (b), 323, 504, 506, and 34.
According to the reports, the incident is said to have happened in the Bhingar area of Ahmednagar district on December 24. The accused arrived on a two-wheeler and an autorickshaw, and physically assaulted the woman. After that, the accused woman Shameen Sheikh alias Shabnam held her hands and allowed the other four accused to gang rape the woman. Imran, Shahnu, Akbar and Bashir raped her one after another.
Shameen Gafoor Sheikh is a resident of Ambika Nagar, Kedgao while Imran, Shahanur, Akhbar, and Basheer are residents of Mukundnagar, Bara Imam Kotla, Jhendigate, and Link Road, Kotla respectively. The accused had followed the victim woman on a two-wheeler and in an auto-rickshaw owned by Akhbar before assaulting and gang-raping her/
The victim filed a complaint with the police after the incident. The police registered a case based on the complaint and the woman has been admitted to the hospital for treatment. The police said that a search for the accused is going on. The police also informed that other crimes are already registered against the accused persons.
Earlier, a similar case was reported from Mumbai, Maharashtra. The State Police had arrested one named Insan Husain Shaik for sexually assaulting his minor daughter and impregnating her. The accused was 42 years old and he had been brutally raping his 16-year-old daughter several times. The incident came to the fore when the victim was found pregnant. The accused was arrested by the Police under sections 376, 376 (n) of the IPC and POCSO Act.
Also, a minor girl was raped several times by the accused identified as Ajmoddin Mohammed Sheikh in Ahmednagar district of Maharashtra. The accused had trapped the girl into a love affair and had raped her brutally. The Police had then booked the accused under IPC sections 376 (2) (n), 506 and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POSCO) sections 5 (j) (2), 5 (l), and 6.
Mukesh and Nita Ambani’s youngest son Anant Ambani will soon marry Shaila and Viren Merchant’s daughter Radhika Merchant. The Roka ceremony of the would-be couple was held on December 29 at the Shrinathji Temple in Nathdwara, Rajasthan.
Parimal Nathwani, Director-Corporate Affairs (RIL), congratulated the couple on the occasion and said, “Heartiest congratulations to dearest Anant and Radhika for their Roka ceremony at the Shrinathji temple in Nathdwara. May Lord Shrinath ji’s blessings be with you always.”
Heartiest congratulations to dearest Anant and Radhika for their Roka ceremony at the Shrinathji temple in Nathdwara. May Lord Shrinath ji’s blessings be with you always. #AnantAmbanipic.twitter.com/BmgKDFsPYh
Following the ceremony, the would-be couple participated in rajbhog-shringar ceremonies at the temple. The duo has known each other for a few years and will soon be married.
Anant is the youngest child of business tycoon Mukesh Ambani. He graduated from Brown University and currently leads the energy business at Reliance Industries Limited. He also serves as a Director on the Boards of Jio Platforms and Reliance Retail Ventures.
On the other hand, Radhika is a graduate of New York University and is currently working as a Director on the Board of Encore Healthcare.
In 2017, Radhika completed her graduation and joined Isprava Group, a luxury holiday home developer. Later, she joined the family business and became a director at Encore Healthcare. She is a trained Bharatnatyam Dancer and took training from Guru Bhavana Thakar. Earlier this year, Ambanis organised her Arangetram ceremony at the Jio World Centre in Mumbai, which was attended by Aamir Khan, Sagarika Ghatge, Ranveer Singh, Salman Khan among others.
On Thursday, December 29, a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the hospital where his mother Heeraben Modi is admitted, the Gujarat government said that Heeraben is “recovering well” and will be discharged in a day or two. The doctors will decide about the discharge after her CT Scan and MRI test reports are out.
A communication issued by the Gujarat Chief Minister’s Office read, “Heeraba’s health is good. Her health is improving speedily. She’ll probably be discharged in a day or two. Earlier tonight, the oral diet was started.”
Notably, Heeraben Modi was hospitalised on Tuesday at the UN Mehta Institute of Cardiology & Research Centre in Ahmedabad after her health deteriorated. The hospital today published a health update, saying that ‘Smt. Hiraba Modi’s health condition is recovering’.
Health update issued by the hospital
U N Mehta Institute of Cardiology & Research Centre is a government-funded autonomous Super-Speciality Cardiac Teaching hospital located on the campus of the civil Hospital. It is the biggest single Super-Speciality Cardiac Teaching hospital in the Country, and one of the biggest in the world. Promoted by the Gujarat government, it is affiliated with the BJ Medical College, Civil Hospital Campus, Asarwa, Ahmedabad, a government medical college.
PM Modi’s elder brother Somabhai Modi also said on Thursday that their mother’s health condition has improved. He added that she had liquid food in the morning, and is showing signs of recovery. “Her condition is gradually improving. She is much better today, she moved her arms and legs,” Somabhai Modi told the media.
“She even asked us, through a sign, to put her in a sitting position and also took liquid food given by the hospital. The decision about her discharge will be taken by doctors after conducting her CT Scan and MRI today,” he further said.
Hiraben Modi resides with her youngest son Pankaj Modi, a retired government official, at Raysan village near the Gandhinagar city of Gujarat.
Other than PM Modi, CM Bhupendra Patel and several ministers and MLAs including Health Minister Rushikesh Patel, Women and Child Development Minister Bhanuben Babariya, and MPs Parbatbhai Patel and Jugalji Thakor, MLAs Darshanaben Vaghela and Kaushik Jain have visited the hospital.
On December 29, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh published a tweet spreading misinformation about India-made cough syrups. In his tweet, he claimed that cough syrup made in India was linked to the deaths of around 70 kids in Gambia, and now 18 children have died in Uzbekistan because of a cough syrup made in India.
Jairam Ramesh targeted India for the unfortunate deaths of 18 children in Uzbekistan. Source: Twitter
He said, “Made-in-India cough syrups seem to be deadly. First, it was the deaths of 70 kids in Gambia, and now it is that of 18 children in Uzbekistan. Modi Sarkar must stop boasting about India being a pharmacy to the world and take the strictest action.” Notably, the reports about the death of children in Gambia being linked to medicine manufactured in India have already been debunked.
‘While hating Modi, you have started hating the country’ – Netizens react
Soon after Ramesh’s tweet, netizens called him out for hating India on the pretext of targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi. BJP’s national spokesperson Sambit Patra said, “The Gambian authorities and as well as DCGI have already clarified that the death of children in Gambia has nothing to do with the ‘Made in India’ cough syrup but in the garb of hating Modi, Congress always ends up manifesting its deep-rooted hatred for India.”
The Gambian authorities and as well as DCGI have already clarified that the death of children in Gambia has nothing to do with the ‘Made in India’ cough syrup but in the garb of hating Modi, Congress always ends up manifesting its deep rooted hatred for India. https://t.co/NKZg39zKKw
Twitter user Rahul Raj (bhak_sala) said, “If you wonder why India became a trading hub entirely dependent on China, research how politicians of India killed innovation and manufacturing in India for petty political gains and money.”
If you wonder why India became a trading hub entirely dependent on China, research how politicians of India killed innovation and manufacturing in India for petty political gains and money. https://t.co/CXqu8TGFCL
Banker Chetan Bragta said, “Congress leader Jairam Ramesh in his hatred has forgotten that he is also a citizen of this India. They should not make such allegations without any proof. It is a matter of great shame that he is questioning the reputation of the country he lives in.
Congress leader @Jairam_Ramesh in his hatred has forgotten that he is also a citizen of this India. They should not make such allegations without any proof. It is a matter of great shame that he is questioning the reputation of the country he lives in. https://t.co/FYgSX2bI2m
Around 21 children in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, were reported to have fallen sick after taking a medicine called Dok-1 Max, a cough syrup of Indian origin. 18 of these 21 children died while getting treatment in the hospital, following the reports that children fell sick after taking Uzbekistan’s Ministry of Health issued an advisory to immediately stop the medicine sale in the country.
In a letter shared by Twitter user Abbos Kh, the Ministry of Health was informed about the incident on December 15 by the administration of Children’s Multidisciplinary Medical Centre, Samarkand. The letter noted that children took Dok-1 Max medicine during the treatment of viral disease, a popular medicine among primary care doctors. (OpIndia used Google Translator and Google Lens for the translation of the letter.)
It further noted that the medicine might cause severe side effects, including kidney damage. In two months, 21 patients were admitted to the hospital, out of which 17 had severe side effects, and 15 died. The letter further urged the Ministry to prohibit the said medicine among children.
On December 22, a press release was issued on the official Telegram Channel of Uzbekistan’s Health Ministry informing about the side effects of the medicine. Pharmaceutical Network Development Agency said in the statement that a team of experts was formed to examine the medicine Dok-1 Max manufactured by India’s Marion Biotech Pvt Ltd. The sale of the medicine was temporarily suspended till further notice. (OpIndia used Google Translator and Google Lens for the translation of the press release.)
December 22 press release. Source: Telegram
On December 27, Uzbekistan’s Ministry of Health issued a press release saying that the results of Dok-1 Max syrup confirmed the crime and that the results were sent to law enforcement agencies. As per the press release, Marion Biotech Pvt Ltd’s Dok-1 Max tablets and syrup were registered in the country in 2012. The drug was imported to Uzbekistan by Kiramax Medical LLC. (OpIndia used Google Translator and Google Lens for the translation of the press release.)
December 27 press release. Source: Telegram
After the death of 18 out of 21 children who reportedly got sick with acute respiratory diseases, a probe was initiated. During the investigation, the Ministry’s officials found that the children took medicine for 2-7 days up to 2.5-5 millilitres 3-4 times a day. The dose taken by the children was much more than normally prescribed for the children.
Furthermore, the medicine was taken without a doctor’s prescription. The main ingredient of the medicine is paracetamol, which confused the parents, and they used it incorrectly as an anti-cold medicine independently or on the recommendation of the pharmacists. “This caused the condition of patients to worsen,” the Ministry added.
The laboratory also found traces of ethylene glycol, a contaminant, in the syrup, which is a toxic substance, and 1-2 ml of a 95% concentration can cause severe damage to the patient’s health. Side effects of the contaminant include vomiting, lethargy, seizures, cardiovascular problems and acute kidney failure.
The Ministry took action against seven employees. A number of specialists were disciplined for their carelessness and inattention to their duties as they failed to analyse deaths on time and did not take necessary actions. The medicine was withdrawn from sale across the country. The Ministry further urged the parents not to give medicine to children without a prescription from a doctor.
On the same day, the Minister of Health, B. Musaev, expressed his condolences to the parents and relatives of 18 children who died. He also assured that the culprits involved in the case would be held accountable.
Statement by Health Minister. Source: Telegram
India’s action in the Uzbekistan case
Soon after the authorities in India were informed about the incident, an inquiry into the Noida-based drug manufacturer was initiated. Hindustan Times quoted an unnamed official from the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) saying that the Drugs Controller of India and the Uzbek regulator are in contact. The information was being shared related to the matter. “Drugs Controller General of India is in contact with the Uzbek regulator to obtain detailed information. This company, it seems, has been supplying drugs to Uzbekistan for a long period of time,” he said.
On Tuesday, the Union Drug Regulatory informed the Uttar Pradesh Drug Licensing Authority to initiate an inquiry. Samples were taken from the factory by the north zone drug regulatory team of the central government and state drug regulatory teams. AK Jain, Deputy Commissioner, DCLA UP, said, “As soon as we received an email from the central drugs regulatory team that an inquiry needed to be conducted today, we immediately formed an investigating team comprising the assistant commissioner of drugs (Meerut division) and drug inspector from Gautam Buddh Nagar (Uttar Pradesh) to join the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (north zone) to investigate the allegations.”
Quoting Central Drugs Controller’s officers, HT noted that the samples were taken from the exported and current batches of the medicine and sent to a laboratory for testing. The action will be taken as per the report. Furthermore, another officer told HT that the company’s representatives were questioned about the raw material for the medicine. The officer added, “The tests of Maiden samples conducted in India did not find anything concrete; therefore, it will not be prudent to make any comments at this stage on Marion’s samples. Let’s wait for the test report.”
In a statement, Marion Biotech Pharma Company legal head Hasan Raza told ANI, “We regret deaths, the government is conducting the inquiry. We will take action as per the report. Samples were collected. Manufacturing of that product has been halted as of now and other processes are underway.”
On December 29, Dr Mansukh Mandaviya, Minister of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, said, “Regarding reports from Uzbekistan concerning contaminated cough syrup made by Indian company Marion Biotech, Noida, Uttar Pradesh, the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) under the Ministry of Health & FW, Govt of India is in regular contact with the national drug regulator of Uzbekistan since 27th December.”
The samples of the cough syrup have been taken from the manufacturing premises and sent to Regional Drugs Testing Laboratory, Chandigarh for testing. (3/3)
He added, “Immediately on receipt of the information, a joint inspection of Marion Biotech’s Noida facility was carried out by UP Drug Control and the CDSCO team. Further action as appropriate would be initiated based on the inspection report. The samples of the cough syrup have been taken from the manufacturing premises and sent to Regional Drugs Testing Laboratory, Chandigarh for testing.”
Immediately on receipt of the information, a joint inspection of Marion Biotech’s Noida facility was carried out by UP Drug Control and the CDSCO team. Further action as appropriate would be initiated based on the inspection report. (2/3)
There are two aspects of the report. The first ethylene glycol was present in the medicine. Secondly, it was noted by Uzbekistan’s Ministry of Health that high doses of the medicine were given to the children without a valid prescription from a doctor. As the probe into the matter is underway, it will be too soon to assert and blame the Indian drug fully for the unfortunate incident.
The case of children’s death in Gambia
On December 16, it was reported that India’s Drugs Controller General Dr VG Somani wrote a letter to Dr Rogerio Gaspar, Director of Regulation and Prequalification at the World Health Organization. In this letter, Somani asserted that the Indian cough syrups from Maiden Pharma meet the necessary regulatory standards and are, therefore, harmless.
He added that the WHO’s statement blaming Indian cough syrups for the deaths of children in Gambia had impacted India’s image in the world adversely. Somani’s letter was written in response to the WHO’s letter dated December 6 2022. Notably, the WHO blamed India’s Maiden pharmaceuticals for the deaths of children in the Gambia in October. In October 2022, the WHO feared the children died from the company’s cough syrup.
On Wednesday, October 12 2022, the Central Government constituted a four-member expert committee to probe the World Health Organization (WHO) reports on the deaths of 66 children in the Gambia, which was hastily blamed on cough syrups made by Sonipat-based firm Maiden Pharmaceuticals Limited. According to an order from the Haryana government, Maiden Pharmaceuticals Limited’s firm in Sonipat was instructed to cease producing all cough syrups. A show-cause notice for 12 irregularities discovered at the company’s production facility was also issued. The letter written by Dr VG Somani also informs the WHO director about this.
In November this year, an Economic Times report stated that the specialised agency of the United Nations (UN) has failed to provide the documents to the Indian authorities, which are required to further the investigation into the deaths of 70 deceased children in Gambia.
“The Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation(CDSCO), the drug regulator in India, has written thrice to the World Health Organisation but to no avail. So far, it has received no response from WHO,” the report added.
China becomes ‘black market’ for Indian Covid drugs
As per the Hindustan Times report, the Chinese pharmaceutical market has become a ‘black market’ for Indian generic Covid drugs. While the Chinese government has approved two antiviral drugs, Pfizer’s Paxlovid and Azvudine (HIV drug by Genuine Biotech of China), the medicines are only available in selected hospitals. China is currently facing an unprecedented surge in Covid-19 cases. As per WHO, 159,232 new cases were reported by the Chinese government in the last seven days. 472 people have lost their lives in the last week due to complications associated with Covid-19.
The residents of China have turned their hope towards Indian generic Covid drugs. However, they are being obtained via illegal channel. Indian drugs like Primovir, Paxista, Molnunat and Molnatris have entered the Chinese market via illegal channels and are available on Weibo. However, as they are not approved by the Chinese government, selling them is a punishable offence.
HT quoted Sahil Munjal, chairman of the Pharmaceuticals Export Promotion Council of India (Pharmexcil), who told Reuters that Indian companies were getting quote requests for ibuprofen and paracetamol. If required, the production of these drugs will be stepped up to meet the Chinese market requirements.
