How Gujarat, a dry state, is drowning in alcohol-laced cough syrups

Two weeks back, five people died and two fell ill after consuming an Ayurvedic syrup contaminated with methyl alcohol in Gujarat’s Kheda district.

The two who fell ill were rushed to Ahmedabad civil hospital with complaints of chest pain. However, after being critical on ventilator and dialysis for about a week, both succumbed to multiple cardiac complications due to methanol consumption, which is poisonous for human body in any proportion.

The five victims, who hail from Bilodara and Bagdu villages of Kheda, complained of acute chest pain before they were declared dead enroute the local hospital in Kheda.

Preliminary investigation revealed that all five deaths were linked to suspected consumption of the syrup Kalmeghasav — Asava Arishta, an Ayurvedic medicine which was purchased from a grocery shop in Bilodara village near Nadiad, Kheda.

“By the time, we were informed of the deaths on November 29, the funerals of four people were already over. However, we managed to convince the family of the fifth deceased to conduct a postmortem and they found traces of methanol in his body. Besides, the family members also confirmed that he had consumed a syrup, following which we launched an investigation,” said Rajesh Gadiya, the Kheda superintendent of police.

“Kishan Sodha, the owner of the shop, admitted to having sold syrup bottles to around 60 people in one week. Two of his customers were his father Sankalbhai and his friend from Baldev Sodha, who died after being admitted in civil hospital, Ahmedabad. Sankalbhai’s blood test also confirmed the presence of methanol, which means the chemical was present in the syrup,” added Gadhiya.

Even as the Kheda police was investigating the alcohol-laced Ayurvedic syrup that killed five, two more died on December 7 in Botad district after consuming the same syrup, taking the toll to seven.

The Ayurvedic cover

Gujarat has been a dry state since its formation in 1960. Sale and consumption of alcohol in any form is banned and punishable under Prohibition and Excise Act in the state. Over the years, however, illegal alcohol consumption despite the prohibition has been rampant in the state.

According to the Food and Drug Control Authority (FDCA), the permissible alcohol limit in Ayurvedic concoctions in 12 per cent. But seized syrups have been found laced with 14 per cent to 86 per cent alcohol.

While the Gujarat Police is still grappling with bootlegging, or illegal sale of alcohol, the rise of cheap intoxicants made from banned chemicals and industrial-grade solvents have become a new phenomenon in the state.

One such cheap alternative to alcohol is ethanol-laced Ayurvedic syrups that are being manufactured primarily in central Gujarat.

In October this year, the Vadodara Prevention of Crime Branch (PCB) raided and seized a cache of beer from Anand district that was being sold as Ayurvedic cough syrup. The same month, Anand police had booked a woman and seized Ayurvedic product containing 11.11 per cent alcohol as displayed on the bottle.

In yet another raid by Anand district police, Rs 31.34 lakh worth of items including products named Denish Ayurvedic Herbal Tonic Shree Draksha Asva, Meghna Ayurvedic Herbal Tonic and Jal Dhara Asva, were seized from a house in Dahewan village of Borsad taluka. Bottling materials, finished products and as cartons marked with three different product names, were being manufactured by a company which had fake addresses in Aji Dam GIDC of Rajkot and Makarpura GIDC in Vadodara.

On December 2, the Vadodara PCB booked two men who were allegedly manufacturing and illegally selling a heavily alcohol-laced drink by passing it off as an Ayurvedic product from a manufacturing unit named Durga Industrial Estate in Sankarda village. Products worth of more than Rs 85.81 lakh were seized from the unit which was found to be illegal. As per the Food and Drugs Control Authority (FDCA), the company had no license to either manufacture or sell such product.

The product was later identified by the FDCA as Kankasava, an Ayurvedic medicine (syrup), after the Forensic Science Laboratory in Ahmedabad confirmed the presence of ethanol (common liquor) in the contents of the product.

This month, after seven people died of consuming methanol contaminated ayurvedic syrup marketed as Meghasva (Asava Arishta), police investigations launched by Gujarat police led them to one Taufiq Shaikh, the distributor of the ethanol.

After raiding Azyan Multilink LLP, a company run by Shaikh on Mira Road, Mumbai, the Gujarat Police found that Shaikh and his business partners had sold 13,000 litres of ethanol (common alcohol), without a licence from the Prohibition and Excise Department of Gujarat, by not labelling it as hazardous or inflammable. He had been misbranding ethanol as apsol without disclosing the restricted contents of the barrels.

The ethanol was then trafficked across state lines to Gujarat to be ultimately used to manufacture the alcohol-laden Ayurvedic syrup that was sold at just Rs 100 per bottle.

The drowning dry state

The India Drugs and Cosmetics Act exempts sellers from obtaining a licence to produce Ayurvedic medication. When it comes to Ayurvedic medicines, licensing is required only to manufacture, unlike allopathic drugs where licensing is mandatory at every supply chain level.

This exemption allows unrestricted sale of these products, even those containing alcohol, without coming under the radar of FDCA. This goes directly against Gujarat’s Prohibition Act.

Noticeably, amongst other Ayurvedic medications, the Asava Arishta, a syrup that contains up to 12 per cent of alcohol, has become a cheap substitute for Indian-made foreign liquor in Gujarat.

Noticeably, the Gujarat government has been aware of the widespread misuse of alcohol-laden ayurvedic syrups. Despite this information, about 915 licensed Ayurvedic medication manufacturers operate in the state.

“We have seen several violations where manufacturers exploited the exemption given to them. It is easy to sell the syrup especially in rural areas where they are being sold from grocery shops and paan shops,” said FDCA commissioner Dr Hemant Koshia.

“Following the Kheda tragedy, FDCA has initiated a comprehensive crackdown across Gujarat. In one day alone, 700 premises were raided. We found that alcoholic syrups are being sold in cold drinks shops, betel (pan) shops and even small grocery shops. We seized 69 bottles from just one soda and cold drink shop in Ahmedabad,” added Koshia.

Gujarat DGP Vikas Sahay has also launched a statewide operation against the illegal sale of ayurvedic syrups being consumed for intoxication. Gandhinagar police last week, apprehended three individuals for selling such syrups from medical and general provision stores. A total of 238 bottles of Herby Flow, Sunidra Asav, Stoneheal Asav – all ayurvedic medicines, were seized in a week.