Drugs

Drug regulator may retain GMP relaxations in Schedule M for select products

DTAB recommends continuing GMP exemptions under revised Schedule M for disinfectants, medical gases and gelatin capsules, citing limited relevance of strict norms

Matthew Perry death: 'Ketamine Queen' gets 15 yrs jail for supplying drugs

A federal judge on Wednesday handed down a sentence of 15 years in prison to a woman who pleaded guilty to selling actor Matthew Perry the ketamine that killed him in 2023. "You're going to have to show some epic resilience," Judge Sherilyn Peace Garnett said to Jasveen Sangha, echoing the defendant's words earlier in the hearing about her self-improvement. Citing the unique role Sangha admitted to playing in Perry's death and her broader drug-dealing business, the judge gave the 42-year-old a sentence that will almost certainly be more than all four of her co-defendants combined. The hearing Wednesday in a Los Angeles courtroom was in many ways the pinnacle of the two-and-a-half year investigation and prosecution that followed the overdose death of the 54-year-old actor, whose role as Chandler Bing on NBC's 'Friends' in the 1990s and 2000s made him one of the biggest television stars of the era. Keith Morrison, Perry's stepfather and correspondent for NBC's 'Dateline', told the ju

Centre increases monitoring of weight-loss drugs, flags safety concerns

Regulators have been asked to track adverse events as India tightens oversight on popular obesity drugs amid rising demand and concerns over misuse and misleading promotions

India's 'Mounjaro brides': Weight-loss injections enter pre-wedding prep

Many marriages are still arranged by families, often accompanied by expectations around physical appearance and financial status, which is driving a growing demand for weight-loss solutions

As India's weight management market expands, misleading ads risk rises

A week before semaglutide's patent expiry, the CDSCO issued an advisory warning pharma companies against promoting prescription weight-loss drugs, banned by law

DCGI intensifies crackdown on unauthorised sale of GLP-1 weight-loss drugs

To ensure ethical pharmaceutical practices in the supply chain of weight-loss drugs of the GLP-1 class, the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) has intensified its regulatory surveillance against the unauthorised sale and promotion of the medications. To this end, inspections and audits have been carried out at many online pharmacy warehouses, drug wholesalers and retailers to check for unauthorised sale and improper prescription. With the recent introduction of multiple generic variants of GLP-1-based weight-loss drugs in the Indian market, concerns have emerged regarding their on-demand availability through retail pharmacies, online platforms, wholesalers, and wellness clinics, health ministry officials said on Tuesday. These drugs, when used without proper medical supervision, may lead to serious adverse effects and related health risks. Taking cognisance of the situation, the DCGI, in collaboration with state regulators, has initiated a series of targeted actions to curb .

CDSCO flags 4 spurious drugs, 194 fail quality tests in February 2026

CDSCO flagged four drugs as spurious and 194 as not of standard quality in February 2026, including widely used medicines, as part of routine surveillance

Eli Lilly banks on tirzepatide's clinical edge as GLP-1 generics loom

Lilly positions tirzepatide as a clinically superior option as semaglutide patent expiry triggers a wave of generics, intensifying competition in India's diabetes and obesity market

Bracing for a flood of semaglutide generics, Novo holds the price line

Novo Nordisk says competition in semaglutide will be driven by science and quality, not pricing, as multiple generic versions prepare to enter India after patent expiry

Morning-after pills: DTAB pushes for boxed warnings, stricter norms

CDSCO's DTAB panel proposes boxed warnings on emergency contraceptive pills and inclusion under Schedule K to ensure safer usage while retaining over-the-counter availability

Delhi HC seeks response from Centre, CDSCO over misuse of diabetes drugs

These drugs, though approved for type 2 diabetes, have witnessed a surge in demand globally due to their weight-loss effects

Ozempic patent expiry to trigger boom in weight-loss drugs in India

India is the first major country after Canada where Novo is losing patent on semaglutide and will see an onslaught of generic versions

India's challenge to evergreening: 2026 may test drug patent regime

Experts say 2026 could be a crucial year for drug patents, with the likely emergence of fresh disputes over follow-on patents

CDSCO mandates online applications for manufacture, sale of r-DNA drugs

CDSCO has mandated online submission of applications for licences to manufacture and sell r-DNA-origin drugs through the ONDLS portal to streamline regulatory processes

Delhi HC gives nod to disciplinary action against Sameer Wankhede

The Delhi High Court on Friday gave its nod to the continuation of disciplinary proceedings against IRS officer Sameer Wankhede in connection with the 2021 Cordelia cruise drugs case. A bench of Justices Anil Kshetarpal and Amit Mahajan allowed the Centre's plea against an order of the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) which quashed the disciplinary proceedings against Wankhede in the matter. "This petition is allowed," said the bench while pronouncing the verdict. A detailed copy of the verdict is awaited. The central government challenged the CAT order passed on January 19, quashing the 'Charge Memorandum' issued to Wankhede on August 18, 2025, by the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs. Wankhede, a 2008 batch Indian Revenue Service (IRS) officer, made headlines for allegedly demanding Rs 25 crore from Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan's family by threatening to implicate his son Aryan Khan in the Cordelia cruise drug bust case during his tenure in the Narcotics Control

Cartel violence in Mexico raises tourism concerns ahead of FIFA World Cup

Maria Dolores Aguirre's family corner store has lived off tourism that has flowed into her charming cobblestoned town of Tapalpa, tucked away in the mountains of Jalisco state. That was until gunshots erupted and helicopters flew overhead as the Mexican army killed the country's most powerful drug lord, just a few kilometers from her home. Now, the 50-year-old Aguirre worries that the bloodshed will deal a blow to her livelihood and change towns like hers. It is something many in the western Mexican state are grappling with, from its Pacific Ocean beaches to its capital Guadalajara that will host matches in June for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. "It's going to affect us. It's collateral damage," Aguirre said. "The government is going to have to have a lot of security... The entire world just saw what happened and, of course, people are going to think twice about coming." Fighting between the Jalisco New Generation Cartel and Mexican security forces raged on in a number of states Monday,

All about El Mencho, the Mexican drug lord killed in military operation

From a small village in Michoacan to leading the powerful CJNG cartel across 60 countries, El Mencho built a vast drug network before being killed in a Mexican army operation in Jalisco

Mexican forces tracked drug lord El Mencho to cabin by following his lover

Top security officials revealed details of the operation that led to the death of Mexico's most wanted drug cartel leader

Three killed as US military strikes alleged drug boat in Caribbean Sea

The US military said it killed three people Monday in a strike on an alleged drug-smuggling vessel in the Caribbean Sea as part of the Trump administration's months-long campaign against alleged traffickers. Monday's attack brought the death toll to at least 151 people since the Trump administration began targeting those it calls "narcoterrorists" in small vessels in early September. As with most of the military's statements on the more than 40 known strikes, US Southern Command said it targeted alleged drug traffickers along known smuggling routes. The military did not provide evidence that the vessel was ferrying drugs but posted a video on X that showed a small boat with outboard engines being destroyed. "Intelligence confirmed the vessel was transiting along known narco-trafficking routes in the Caribbean and was engaged in narco-trafficking operations," Southern Command stated in a post on X. "Three male narco-terrorists were killed during this action." President Donald Trump

Mexico erupts after cartel boss killed; India issues advisory: What we know

Mexico saw gun battles, arson and road blockades after its army killed cartel boss El Mencho. With violence spreading across states, India and the US advised citizens to shelter in place