The Baddi-Barotiwala industrial belt in Himachal Pradesh, one of Asia’s biggest pharmaceutical hubs, has been under a cloud following allegations that a few pharma firms are involved in illegal drug rackets. Police from neighbouring Punjab raided units at Paonta Sahib and Kala Amb in Sirmaur district, leading to some arrests and the recovery of 30 lakh capsules of pharma opioids valued at Rs 15 crore. The raiding team found that tramadol, an opioid painkiller, manufactured by Orison Pharma was being marketed by Mumbai-based PP Pharma, which existed only on paper. Himachal Police also swung into action and raided more units at Paonta Sahib and Kala Amb. According to DGP Sanjay Kundu, the companies have been using fake names to market their drugs, mainly tramadol.
The trail leading to these revelations began with the seizure of around 50,000 tramadol capsules in Punjab, and led the police to a pharma unit in Himachal. The CBI’s Interpol division provided inputs about another firm at Paonta Sahib—Laborate Pharmaceuticals—that has been accused of...
