4:54 AM
LAHORE: One of the owners of the pharmaceutical companies, against whom cases were registered for manufacturing substandard drugs in light of the deaths as a result of a ‘mystery’ disease, has said that the case was a result of mismanagement as the issue had come up at one hospital only.
The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) had registered cases against three pharmaceutical laboratories and arrested their owners for manufacturing substandard drugs. FIA’s Punjab chapter swung into action on the orders of Interior Minister Rehman Malik and registered cases against three firms – Alfalah Pharma (Pvt) Limited, Mega Pharmaceuticals (Pvt) Limited and Pharmawise Laboratories (Pvt) Limited – on the complaints of federal drug inspectors.
The owner, while speaking to the media, said his company had been supplying the medicine to a number of hospitals and that it had been ‘ill-prescribed’ in this case. He said that a dengue patient already has low blood platelet count and the doctors should make sure that they check the patient’s history before administering the medicines.
Answering a question if this was all a conspiracy, he said that there was a possibility that this was propaganda from multinational companies to suppress the local industry.
He said he accused the doctors, staff at PIC and those prescribing the medicines for the entire episode.
Another owner said that the booklet inside the medicine box clearly stated that the medicine was used for blood-thinning and that it was up to the doctor to decide the intake.
Death toll rises to 62
At least 62 people have died after reacting to a free medicine from the Punjab Institute of Cardiology (PIC), FTNews reported on Tuesday. The government of Punjab has claimed that only 28 have died of the reaction so far.
More than 300 patients are reported to be under treatment at different hospitals in Lahore, out of which 226 patients are at the Services Hospital.
Posted in: NATIONAL
