Probe body may submit report today
The seven-member committee formed to investigate the presence of any poisonous compound in paracetamol and vitamin syrup did not submit its report yesterday as scheduled, and instead will submit it today.
"We have completed testing all the samples and the report is almost prepared. Hopefully, we will submit it tomorrow," a member of the committe said yesterday.
The committee formed on July 21 and headed by Abdul Jalil, joint secretary (hospital), has completed testing of some 300 samples drugs, he said.
While talking to The Daily Star Prof Moazzam Hossain, chairman of the department of Pediatric Nephrology of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) and member of the investigation committee also said that the committee has collected samples from across the country and tested them at the Drug Testing Laboratory and three other private laboratories.
Meanwhile, the three-member committee formed by BSMMU to investigate the cause behind the death of five patients from renal failure, submitted its report to the hospital authorities.
The committee headed by Prof Shahana Akhter Rahman of the department of Pediatrics found different reasons caused the deaths from renal failure.
The committee also placed recommendations including a strong vigilance by the government on the manufacture of drugs, ensuring that no pharmacy runs without a registered pharmacist and that drugs are not sold without prescriptions.
Following the death of some 25 children from renal failure, authorities found that Rid Pharmaceutical Company Limited had been using Diethylene Glycol -- a substance used in tannery and battery industries -- instead of Propylene Glycol in some drugs.
Rid Pharmaceutical has since been sealed off and the health minister Dr A F M Ruhal Haque has warned of stern action against the company.
He also said that the Drug Administration would be reformed and regular inspections would be carried out at the 187 registered pharmaceutical companies in the country to control the quality of the drugs.
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