Acting on a tip-off, FDA teams seized counterfeit Trypsin-Chymotrypsin tablets, marketed as Chymoral Forte, worth ₹2.75 lakh from the Pune market.
Pune: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Pune region, has unearthed a large-scale racket involving fake Chymoral Forte tablets, commonly prescribed as anti-inflammatory medicines. The seized stock is falsely labelled under the name of Torrent Pharmaceuticals Ltd., Sikkim, officials said on Thursday.
Acting on a tip-off, FDA teams seized counterfeit Trypsin-Chymotrypsin tablets, marketed as Chymoral Forte, worth ₹2.75 lakh from the Pune market. The investigation began on October 16, 2025, when officials collected samples from Akshay Pharma, Sadashiv Peth. The chemist had sourced the stock from Ajes Medical and Distributors, who had purchased it from Siddhi Pharma, Erandwane. As officials traced the chain further, Siddhi Pharma revealed that the supply originated from M/s Sona Pharma in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh.
With the trail extending beyond Maharashtra, inspectors Shrikant Patil and Vivek Khedkar travelled to Lucknow between November 24 and November 27. Their inquiry revealed that M/s Sona Pharma had bought the drugs from M/s Mahiwal Medico, Gopalganj, Bihar, paying ₹2,34,727.94 in cash to a man identified as Umang Rastogi. Rastogi transferred the money in cash to Mahesh Garg, who allegedly supplied the counterfeit stock through hand-to-hand transactions. Probe revealed that Mahiwal Medico had shut operations and its licence had expired on November 20, 2024. Torrent Pharmaceuticals, Sikkim, informed FDA, Pune that the batch in question was not manufactured by them.
Girish Hukare, joint commissioner, FDA Pune Region, said, “We have filed an FIR at Vishrambaug Police Station.”
Under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940, the sale or purchase of counterfeit medicines is punishable with 7–10 years of imprisonment and a fine of ₹10 lakh, officials said.
