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The Maharashtra Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) has busted yet another illegal abortion drug racket and lodged an FIR with police at Parbhani in Aurangabad division which is latest in the series of such cases where offenders used to stock and sell MTP kits in a clandestine manner without a license.
FDA has confiscated 450 strips of non-surgical abortion medication from the premises at Parbhani and two people have been booked under different sections of Drug and Magic Remedies (DMR) Act, Essential Commodities (EC) Act and Drugs and Cosmetics Act (D&C Act)."
An inter-state abortion drug racket with its network spanning across Gujarat and Delhi was the first case in the series unearthed by the FDA team in the past in which drugs worth over Rs. 3 lakh were confiscated and three people were found contravening the provisions of the law under different sections of Essential Commodities (EC) Act and Drugs and Cosmetics Act (D&C Act).
The racket was run by a licensed stockist based in Mumbai. Around 440 strips of abortion medication was confiscated from the Mumbai based dealer and two medical representatives who supplied him the pills.
Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) pills are recommended by physicians only for pregnancies that haven't exceeded 63 days. Medical abortion pills are prescription drugs that are different from emergency contraceptive pills. They are taken between 7 to 9 weeks of pregnancy and cause the embryo to be expelled from the uterus.
Chemists can dispense the drug only against a prescription issued by a doctor who is registered under the MTP Act.
Preliminary investigation has revealed the presence of a widespread distribution network which used to sell abortion medication at high price to gullible customers. Intelligence reports indicate that private courier and transport companies were being used to ferry these medicines in Mumbai.
An official further elaborated that Rule 64 of the Drugs and Cosmetics Rules, 1945 stipulates that a licence in Form 20, 200B, 200F, 200G, 21 or 210B to sell, stock, exhibit or offer for sale or distribute drugs shall not be granted or renewed to any person unless the authority empowered to grant the licence is satisfied that the premises in respect of which the licence is to be granted or renewed is adequate and equipped with proper storage accommodation.
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