Pharma doctor nexus resurfaces after Chhindwara cough syrup tragedy:Madhya Pradesh Medical Council faces criticism; 10-year delay in action against 20 doctors over Italy trip

The death of 25 children in Chhindwara after consuming the toxic cough syrup Coldrif has brought to light the long-standing and deep-rooted nexus between pharmaceutical companies and doctors.Dr. Praveen Soni, a practitioner from Parasia, had been prescribing this same syrup, manufactured by Shreesan Pharma, for nearly a decade. Though he denied any special understanding with the company, sources suggest there was an undeclared arrangement in place. This tragic case is just the tip of a much larger issue. 10-year-old case gathering dust One of the most striking examples of such collusion lies buried in the files of the Madhya Pradesh Medical Council (MPMC). For the past ten years, a complaint involving 20 private doctors from 14 districts has remained unresolved. The allegation: in 2014, these doctors, along with their families, travelled to Italy, to Venice and Portoro, on an all-expenses-paid trip funded by USV Limited, a major Mumbai-based pharmaceutical company. In return, they allegedly prescribed the company’s medicines to their patients, boosting its profits. The complaint, filed on 28 August 2015 by Vikas Tiwari, a social worker and whistleblower from Raipur, included evidence such as travel itineraries and documentation. According to medical ethics, accepting foreign trips or gifts from pharma firms in exchange for promoting their products is strictly prohibited. Council’s inaction despite clear evidence As per the rules, the Medical Council must dispose of such complaints within six months. However, the MPMC has dragged its feet for a full decade. Until recently, it had only been sending letters to the accused doctors, repeatedly asking them for travel tickets, passport copies, and bank details. Frustrated by the delay, complainant Vikas Tiwari warned the Council that he would file a public interest litigation (PIL) in the Jabalpur High Court. Only after this threat did the Council finally issue notices on 30 September 2025, asking the doctors why disciplinary action should not be taken against them. MP still struggling Tiwari had also filed a similar complaint with the Chhattisgarh Medical Council, naming two doctors from that state who had joined the same Italian tour. The response there was swift. Within four months, the council investigated, issued notices, demanded explanations from both the doctors and the pharma company, and revoked the doctors’ licences. In contrast, the MP Medical Council has managed to send only four notices in ten years. So far, it has received travel tickets from just eight doctors and passport copies from sixteen. Shockingly, it could not even trace the correct addresses of three doctors in a decade. ‘Last Warning’ after a decade of silence Following the complainant’s High Court warning, the Ethics-cum-Disciplinary Committee of the MPMC convened a meeting on 7 August 2025. The committee noted that the doctors had ignored multiple requests to submit passports, income tax returns, audit reports, and bank statements. The council has now issued a final notice, giving the doctors 15 days to provide the required documents. If they fail to comply, final orders will be passed against them. Registrar Dr. Deepti Chaurasia said she took charge only a year ago and that the matter is being handled by the Ethics Committee. However, its chairperson, Dr. Aruna Kumar, who also serves as the Director of Medical Education (DME), declined to comment, saying she had not yet reviewed the case file. Need for action against Pharma companies too According to Vikas Tiwari, focusing only on doctors is insufficient. The pharmaceutical companies that fund such unethical practices must also face penalties. Under the Uniform Code for Pharmaceutical Marketing Practices (UCPMP) 2024, the government can suspend a company’s licence, blacklist it, and make its name public if found guilty of unethical marketing. Tiwari argues that such unchecked collusion not only corrupts the medical system but also robs patients of their health, trust, and money. A Pattern of Negligence: The 2011 Drug Trial Scandal This is not the first time Madhya Pradesh’s healthcare sector has faced such allegations. Between 2008 and 2011, in Indore’s Maharaja Yeshwantrao (MY) Hospital and Mahatma Gandhi Memorial (MGM) Medical College, several reputed government doctors were accused of conducting illegal drug trials on unsuspecting patients. The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) found that doctors had enrolled patients, many poor, illiterate, or mentally ill, without consent, often using fake signatures or thumbprints. These trials allegedly brought crores of rupees to participating doctors, while causing severe side effects and even deaths among patients. The larger picture From illegal drug trials to sponsored foreign tours and toxic syrups, these incidents reveal a dangerous culture of compromise within parts of India’s medical system. The MP Medical Council’s decade-long inaction stands as a symbol of systemic failure. The tragic deaths of children in Chhindwara serve as a grim reminder that such negligence can have fatal consequences, and that accountability, long delayed, is justice denied.