Pharma companies fight fakes with smart packaging

The concluding part of the series delves into strategies being applied by leading drug firms to battle counterfeits

- SOHINI DAS

Indian pharmaceutical companies are stepping up their efforts to combat the problem of counterfeit drugs, employing a variety of strategies, from packaging innovations to engaging private investigation agencies. The stakes are high, as counterfeit medicines not only harm consumers but also tarnish the reputation of leading brands.

Earlier in September, an interstate gang was busted for distributing fake antibiotics to some government hospitals. The drugs — which contained nothing more than talcum powder and starch — were being manufactured in a veterinary medicine laboratory in Haridwar. These fake antibiotics were then circulated across several states, including Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Jharkhand, and Maharashtra, before being uncovered by the Nagpur Rural police.

After a list of drugs that failed quality tests was released in August by the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO), several prominent domestic pharmaceutical companies — including Torrent Pharmaceuticals, Sun Pharmaceutical Industries, and Alkem Laboratories — issued urgent clarifications, insisting the medicines flagged were, in fact, counterfeit, and not manufactured by them. The substandard drugs named by the CDSCO included popular brands such as Pan-D, Clavan 625, Pantocid, and Shelcal 500.