New Delhi: The Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) has flagged 167 drug samples as “not of standard quality” (NSQ) in its monthly drug alert for December, following testing by central and state regulatory laboratories.

According to the alert, Central Drugs Laboratories identified 74 drug samples as NSQ, while State Drugs Testing Laboratories reported 93 samples failing quality standards. The findings were released as part of the CDSCO’s routine regulatory surveillance and are published monthly on its official portal.

Drug samples are classified as NSQ when they fail one or more specified quality parameters. Authorities clarified that such failures are specific to the tested batch and do not automatically raise concerns about other batches or similar products available in the market.

The alert also reported the detection of spurious medicines during December. Four samples from the North Zone laboratory in Ghaziabad, one from the Food and Drug Administration in Ahmedabad, one from Bihar, and one from Maharashtra were identified as spurious. These drugs were found to have been manufactured by unauthorised producers using brand names owned by other companies. The cases are under investigation, and action will be taken in accordance with the Drugs and Cosmetics Act and Rules.

CDSCO officials said the identification of NSQ and spurious drugs is carried out regularly in coordination with state regulators to ensure unsafe medicines are promptly removed from the market, reinforcing India’s drug safety and regulatory oversight framework.

In a previous update for December, the CDSCO had reported 205 drug samples as NSQ, including 64 identified by Central Drugs Laboratories and 141 by State Drugs Testing Laboratories.

IANS