Incident follows comparable deaths of at the very least 70 youngsters in The Gambia after they took cough and chilly syrups made by an Indian agency.

At least 18 youngsters have died after consuming a syrup manufactured by Indian drugmaker Marion Biotech Pvt Ltd, Uzbekistan’s Ministry of Health says.

The ministry mentioned 18 of 21 youngsters who took the Doc-1 Max syrup whereas affected by an acute respiratory illness died after consuming it. It is marketed on the corporate’s web site as a therapy for chilly and flu signs.

A batch of the syrup contained ethylene glycol, which the ministry mentioned is a poisonous substance. The syrup was imported into Uzbekistan by Quramax Medical LLC, the ministry mentioned in its assertion launched on Tuesday.

It additionally mentioned the syrup was given to youngsters at residence with out a physician’s prescription, both by their mother and father or on the recommendation of pharmacists, and at doses that exceeded the usual dose for kids.

It was not instantly clear whether or not all or any of the kids had consumed the suspect batch or had consumed greater than the usual dose, or each.

Indian well being ministry officers mentioned they have been conscious of the report from Uzbekistan however declined to remark, in response to a report by India’s Hindu newspaper.

India on Tuesday launched inspections of some drug factories throughout the nation to make sure top quality requirements, the Reuters information company reported.

The Uzbek fatalities observe similar ones in The Gambia, the place the deaths of at the very least 70 youngsters have been blamed on cough and chilly syrups made by New Delhi-based Maiden Pharmaceuticals Ltd. Both India’s authorities and the corporate have denied the medicines have been at fault.

India is called the “pharmacy of the world”, and its pharmaceutical exports have greater than doubled over the previous decade to $24.5bn prior to now fiscal yr.

The Uzbek well being ministry mentioned it had dismissed seven staff for negligence for not analysing the deaths in a well timed method and never taking crucial measures. It mentioned it had taken disciplinary measures in opposition to some “specialists”, with out specifying what function the specialists had.

It can be withdrawing the Doc-1 Max tablets and syrups from all pharmacies.