Supreme Court exempts Saridon, Piriton Expectorant from government's ban list

The Supreme court on Monday lifted the ban on the sale of Saridon after the painkiller was banned by the Centre last week. 

Besides Saridon, Piriton and Dart were also exempted from the list of 328 fixed-dose combination drugs (FDC) that were banned by the Centre, according to reports.

On September 13, the Union Health Ministry banned the manufacture, marketing and sale of 328 FDC drugs, including several commonly used cough syrups, painkillers, and cold and flu drugs such as Saridon, the skin cream Panderm, diabetes drug Gluconorm PG, antibiotic Lupidiclox and antibacterial Taxim AZ.

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The Supreme Court also asked the Ministry of Health to give its opinion on the petitions filed against the order. The order provides a major relief to the companies like GlaxoSmithKline and Piramal, as these drugs are marketed by these companies. 

The Union Ministry of Health had banned the manufacture, sale or distribution of as many as 328 varieties of combination drugs manufactured in its efforts to keep a check on the irrational use of fixed-dose combination (FDC) medicines. 

The FDC medicines are two or more drugs contained in a single dosage form. They are manufactured to evade price control measures and are low-cost drugs that can treat multiple diseases.

The SC order has affected over 6,000 medicine brands worth about Rs 25,000 crore across the country. Earlier, a government statement had said that the move would help curb the wrong use of 'unsafe' FDC medicines. The health ministry had taken the decision to ban these drugs after the Drugs Technical Advisor Board suggested these drugs might pose health risks.