Hyderabad, May 27 (IANS): Telangana's Drugs Control Administration has suspended the licenses of six wholesalers for 30 days for illegal procurement of insulin injections, it was announced on Monday.

The DCA said that this licence suspension is due to their illegal procurement of insulin injections (pre-filled pens) without purchase bills. The regulator has also initiated prosecution proceedings against the wholesalers.

DCA Director General V. B. Kamalasan Reddy said during raids conducted from March 15 to March 20 at six medical distributors in Hyderabad, DCA detected that insulin injections, sourced from New Delhi without purchase bills, were being sold at substantial discounts of more than 40 per cent by these wholesalers.

Drug Hub, Sree Thirumala Pharma, Shree Paras Medical Agencies, Sri Ganesh Pharma Distributors, Sree Raja Rajeshwara Distributors, and Sri Balaji Agencies are the wholesalers whose licenses have been suspended.

During these special raids, DCA officials seized stocks worth Rs 51.92 lakh, which were illegally procured from Delhi and are suspected to have been illegally diverted from the supply chain, the DG said.

Procuring medicines illegally without purchase bills is a violation of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940. Illegal procurement of medicines without purchase bills is deemed fraudulent primarily because it involves health and safety risks and tax evasion.

The DCA, in addition to launching prosecution against the wholesalers, has taken stringent departmental action by suspending their drug licenses for 30 days, he added.