Ayurvedic Medicines for Blood Sugar, Diet containing Metformin Hydrochloride: Ayurveda Firm Booked

Jaipur: Discovering that an Ayurvedic firm was selling Ayurvedic diabetes medicines and Dietary Supplements that actually contained the allopathic formulation Metformin Hydrochloride that is used to control blood sugar, authorities have now initiated action and booked the firm under various sections of Indian Penal Code including IPC 420.

An FIR was lodged by the Health Department against an ayurvedic firm after contents of allopathic drugs were found in the medicines sold by it, said an official here Thursday.

Drug Controller Rajaram Sharma said in a release that it was confirmed in tests that ayurvedic medicines for diabetes by Ayushraj Enterprises had metformin hydrochloride.

The authorities upon inspection of the premises found that it was selling dietary supplements that contained metformin. This dietary supplement was meant to be exported to UK as the costing on the supplement was mentioned in pounds. Authorities are reported to have such medicines totalling the value to Rs 8.5 crore

"The firm has a licence procured in 2010 from ayurveda department to produce ayurveda drugs. But, it does not have any licence for producing allopathic drugs. We have found it in the laboratory test that the firm was using allopathic drug in ayurveda medicines. " Rajaram Sharma, state's drug controller, health department .

"The dietary supplement is sold not in India but in some other countries. The cost of the dietary supplement mentioned on the box is in pounds, which is per box Rs 4,840 in Indian currency," he told TOI.

The FIR was lodged under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act and sections of the IPC at the Bagru police station including IPC Sections 420, 467, 468, 120-B. . Drug controller has also written to the ayurveda department about the entire issue, which has issued show-cause letter to the firm.

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