A case of suspected poisoning in a cough syrup has alarmed the authorities in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. Several incidents of deaths and illnesses of children were reported in the states in the last week, prompting the authorities to jump into action.
On 28th and 29th September, formal complaints were received by the Rajasthan Medical Services Corporation Limited (RMSCL) from the district health officials regarding two batches of a cough syrup manufactured by a Jaipur-based company, Kaysons Pharma. Samples of batch numbers KL-25/147 and KL-25/148 have been collected by the RMSCL officials and have been sent for testing to the State Drug Testing Laboratory.
The officials, however, pointed out that over 133,000 patients have received this syrup since June this year, and there were no prior complaints until the recent cluster of cases. “Since 2017, about 1.33 lakh bottles of this cough syrup have been supplied to the patients, but no such complaint was received earlier,” said Medical and Health Secretary Gayatri Rathore. The RMSCL has formed a three-member committee to investigate the case. The distribution of the affected batches, as well as all other batches, has been stopped by the authority across the state.
Confirming the reports of children falling ill across several districts in the state, Rajasthan Drug Controller Ajay Phatak said that the entire supply of the syrup has been suspended pending test results. “We have collected statutory samples from the affected batches and sent them for quality testing. A detailed investigation report is expected within five to six days,” said Phatak.
Authorities collected samples in Madhya Pradesh
In addition to that, a central team from the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has collected samples in the Chhindwara district of Madhya Pradesh to probe the role of a cough syrup in the cases of death and sickness of children. Further action will be taken by the authorities after the test results arrive. Associate Professor and Head of Paediatrics, Government Medical College, Chhindwara, Dr Pawan Nandurkar, said that the death toll of children in the state had risen to 9. He said that two cough syrups, Coldrif and Nesto DS, were found common among the cases of deaths and kidney injuries. The district authorities have restricted the sale of these cough syrups until the test findings come out.
Chhindwara, Madhya Pradesh: On deaths of 6 children in one month in the district, Dr Pawan Nandurkar, Associate Professor and Head of Paediatrics, says, “Recently, reports indicated that 7 of our children had died, but now it appears the number has increased to 9… The deaths… pic.twitter.com/2nIu1yr4Xd
— ANI (@ANI) October 3, 2025
Dr Nandurkar said that apart from deaths, kidney injuries have also been reported in some cases, which could have been caused by a number of reasons, including the presence of Diethylene glycol (DEG). The actual reason behind the casualties and the kidney injuries can only be ascertained after the test results.
Cases of death and sickness reported over the last week
About eight children between the ages of 1 and 5 have reportedly fallen sick in the Banswara district of Rajasthan over the last week after consuming the cough syrup.
A toddler in the Bharatpur district of Rajasthan died on 22nd September after consuming a cough syrup prescribed at a primary health centre. His siblings had also taken the medicine, but they vomited it up after feeling uneasy and thus survived. In a preliminary report, Sikar Chief Medical and Health Officer Ashok Maharia reportedly mentioned that the batch of medicine, which is said to be behind the deaths, was not supplied to the community health centre under the Chief Minister’s free medicine scheme.
A two-year-old boy, named Tirthraj, passed away in the Bharatpur district of Rajasthan after suspected poisoning by a cough syrup. The child and his brother were taken to the district hospital on 23rd September with symptoms of cough and cold. Both children were prescribed a cough syrup containing dextromethorphan hydrobromide. The toddler fell asleep soon after consuming the cough syrup and passed away four days later.
In another incident, a 5-year-old boy, Nitish, lost his life after consuming a cough syrup in the Sikar district of Rajasthan. The child had developed a cough and a cold and was taken to the Community Health Centre (CHC) in Chirana on Sunday (28th September). Nitish took the cough syrup prescribed to him by the doctor around 11:30 at night. He woke up around 3 am and hiccuped. His mother gave him some water and put him back to sleep. Nitish never woke up after that. He was rushed to the hospital by his parents, where he was declared dead.
Doctor fell sick after consuming the cough syrup to prove its safety
In the Bayana town of the Bharatpur district, a 3-year-old boy, Gagan Kumar, fell ill after consuming the cough syrup on 24th September. His mother took him to Dr Tarachand Yogi, in charge of the community health centre, who had prescribed the syrup to complain about the syrup. To prove that the syrup was safe, Dr Tarachand Yogi took a dose of the syrup and also gave it to an ambulance driver before leaving for Bharatpur in his car.
However, on his way to Bharatpur, the doctor felt dizzy and pulled up his car on the side and fell unconscious. When his family did not hear from him for hours, they tracked down his location and found him lying unconscious in his car 8 hours later. The driver also reportedly developed similar symptoms hours after consuming the syrup and recovered after treatment.