Dirty business: UP sanitiser makers claim black-marketing of raw material

Drug body says key ingredient IPA currently being sold for Rs 360 a litre in the state against a normal price of Rs 95

With the demand for hand sanitisers skyrocketing due to the coronavirus outbreak, local manufacturers in Uttar Pradesh have alleged brazen black marketing of its main raw material, isopropyl alcohol (IPA), which was allegedly impeding plans to increase production as directed by the central and state governments.

According to UP Drug Manufacturers Association (UPDMA) president Prashant Bhaiya, IPA is currently being sold for Rs 360 per litre in the state against a normal price of Rs 95 per litre.

Noting that hand sanitisers could be effectively manufactured with ethanol/ethyl alcohol, as advised by the World Health Organisation (WHO), he alleged there were severe