Mansukh Mandaviya, the Minister of Health & Family Welfare, and Chemical and Fertilizers, stated while giving an answer to his colleague that there are only 7 cases of Spurious Remdesivir recovery in the whole nation. Mansukh Mandaviya released the data of Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) which falls under the Ministry of Chemical and Fertilizers. But, the figures of spurious Remdesivir recovery what Mandaviya has released and news reports what we have complied, are speaking two completely different stories. There are more than 12 such cases reported regarding recovery of Fake Remdesivir in the month of May only i.e. during the second wave.
During the second wave of the pandemic, especially during the month of May, hundreds of vials of fake remdesivir were recovered. Even in June Delhi police busted fake medicines nexus which had 206 fake vials of Remdesivir and in April Andhra Pradesh police busted Interstate nexus of fake medicines that had been operating from Haryana, UP, Delhi, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Bihar, Punjab, and Chattisgarh.
On 20 July 2021, In the Monsoon session of Loksabha Ranjanben Dhananjay Bhatt asked questions to the Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizers Mansukh Mandaviya who is also a Union Health Minister. The questions were: whether it is a fact that the trading of spurious remdesivir injections was very evident in different parts of the country; whether the Government has taken any action against the producers and the traders involved in the aforesaid act;
In a reply to it, Mansukh Mandaviya presented the report of the CDSCO and released a statement that stated: “As per Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO), amidst reports of black-marketing/hoarding/overpricing/overcharging of Remdesivir injections received, CDSCO had requested all States/UTs Licensing authorities through several advisories to instruct their enforcement staff to keep strict vigil especially at sensitive places and to take stringent action against the offenders by conducting special drives of monitoring and investigation. As per information received by CDSCO from various State Licensing Authorities, 07 cases of spurious Remdesivir injections have been reported wherein enforcement actions like Drug seizure, arrests of accused persons, registration of FIR, etc. have been carried out by respective State Licensing Authorities.”
However, on the condition of anonymity, Ex DCGI exhorts that this is all officials’ games of State Govts. They all have been manipulating the figures for so long. State Governments do not share exact data with CDSCO, hence they present what they get. We all know that these are not real-time figures.