In a major crackdown on illicit and counterfeit drugs being sold in Nepal under the name of a leading Indian pharmaceutical company, the Department of Drug Administration has seized a huge quantity of medicine from various places across the country this week.

The department, the national regulatory body for pharmaceutical products, said its inspectors seized counterfeit Seroflo Rotacaps 250 from multiple wholesale stores in Kathmandu, and one each in Lalitpur, Rupendehi and Kailali.

Seroflo Rotacaps 250 is a salmeterol and fluticasone propionate powder for inhalation officially manufactured by Sikkim-based CIPLA LTD, a leading pharmaceutical company in India.

It is an asthma medicine widely prescribed by pulmonologists and critical care physicians in Nepal and is used by many patients with respiratory illnesses.

“The medicine is very popular and widely used in our country, like paracetamol,” said Shiwani Khadgi, acting director general of the department. “We started receiving complaints from company representatives, who came to us with evidence that counterfeit medicines were available in multiple places.”

The department said counterfeit medicines bearing batch number 5SA2150 were seized during a raid on Chhetrapati-based Ares Pharmaceuticals; batch number 5SA0759 from Success Medicine Distributors; batch numbers 5SA2150 and 5SA0759 from Damber Medicine Distributor; and batch number 5SA0759 from Height Tygun Medicine Suppliers Pvt Ltd.

Drug inspectors said they found typographical errors in the literature printed on the packaging of the suspected fake medicines.

Likewise, medicines bearing batch number 5SA0759 were seized from Lalitpur-based Lifeline Pharma and Distributors Pvt Ltd. Counterfeit medicines with unknown batch numbers were also seized from Rupendehi-based Sainamaina Health Centre Pvt Ltd and Bishnu Murti Medical Suppliers, Kailali.

The raids in Rupandehi were carried out in cooperation with the Nepal Police, according to the department.

“We don’t know whether the counterfeit medicines being sold in the market actually contain the active ingredients used in the original product, or whether they are effective,” said Khadgi. “We will also conduct lab tests on the medicines seized by our drug inspectors to determine whether they are effective or fakes.”

The department has directed its officials to inspect pharmacies and check for counterfeit medicines.

Seizing, suspending, and recalling substandard and counterfeit medicines from the market is a routine part of the department’s risk-reduction measures. Every year, scores of substandard medicines are recalled from the market, according to officials.

However, it is not known whether all substandard medicines ordered to be recalled are actually removed from the market. Officials concede that due to understaffing, the department cannot ensure the timely removal of all substandard medicines. They said around two dozen drug inspectors are responsible for inspecting about 25,000 pharmacies across the country. Apart from this, drug inspectors must also conduct inspections of national and international drug laboratories that supply medicines to Nepal.

Officials said that due to the slow testing process in the National Medicine Laboratory, patients are often compelled to take substandard medicines. The lab tests around 500 medicines per year, while over 25,000 brands are available on the market.