India To Probe Alleged Irregularities Within Drug Regulator

The government of India announced an inquiry on the functioning of the main drug regulator, after a parliamentary report exposed dysfunction within the agency and serious irregularities in the drug approval process.

The government said in a statement that it had appointed three experts to look at the scientific basis of approving new drugs without clinical trials and recommend ways of improving the procedures of the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO).The parliamentary panel accused some officials of the CDSCO of colluding with multinational and Indian drug firms to bypass normal approval procedures.

(Reuters)