New Delhi, 7 Oct

A PIL has been filed in the Supreme Court seeking inquiry and systemic reform in drug safety mechanisms in the wake of deaths of children in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan allegedly due to consumption of toxic cough syrups.

The PIL, filed by advocate Vishal Tiwari, seeks a court-monitored probe into the incidents and urges the constitution of aNational Judicial Commission or Expert Committee headed by a retired Supreme Court judge.

The PIL requests that all pending FIRs and investigations concerning the deaths of children caused by toxic cough syrups across states be transferred to the CBI.

It seeks a probe under the supervision of a retired Supreme Court judge to ensure fairness and uniformity.

The petition contends that separate state-level investigations have led to fragmented accountability, enabling repeated lapses that allow hazardous formulations to reach the market.

The petition comes amid reports from Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, where several children allegedly died after consuming a particular kind of cough syrup.

The plea seeks court's direction to the Central government to constitute a national-level judicial or expert body to identify the regulatory failures that allowed substandard medicines to reach the market.

It also urged the court to mandate toxicological testing of all suspect products through NABL-accredited laboratories before any further sale or export is permitted.

Meanwhile, the Madhya Pradesh government will bear the en

Fourteen children from Chhindwara have died due to suspected renal failure, linked to the consumption of the "toxic" Coldrif cough syrup, as per officials.

Nine children, seven from Chhindwara and two from Betul, were undergoing treatment at various hospitals in Nagpur in neighbouring Maharashtra for kidney infections caused by the contaminated Coldrif cough syrup, an official said.

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav on Tuesday directed the authorities to ensure that the administration bears the entire cost of treatment of these children, the official said.

To ensure proper treatment, a joint team of executive magistrates and doctors has been deployed at various hospitals in Nagpur.

The team was maintaining constant touch with the affected families and hospitals to ensure proper arrangements for the children's treatment, the official said.

The Madhya Pradesh government on Monday suspended two drug inspectors and a deputy director of the Food and Drug Administration amid the probe into the death of 14 children from Chhindwara. CM Yadav also transferred the state's drug controller.

 Dr Praveen Soni from Chhindwara has been arrested for alleged negligence, while a case has been registered against the Coldrif cough syrup manufacturing company.

 The government has banned the sale of Coldrif cough syrup, manufactured by Sresan Pharmaceutical, Kancheepuram (Tamil Nadu), as the drug samples have been found to contain a highly toxic substance, according to officials.