Uzbekistan on Monday handed out sentences to 21 people linked to the deaths of 68 children who consumed a contaminated cough syrup produced in India.
At least 86 children were poisoned in the Central Asian country between 2022 and 2023, of whom 68 died.
Indian citizen Singh Raghvendra Pratap, the director of a company that imported the Doc-1 Max syrup into Uzbekistan, was given the harshest sentence of 20 years.
He was found guilty of corruption, tax fraud and forgery, according to the Supreme Court of Uzbekistan.
Samples of the syrup revealed it was contaminated with either diethylene glycol or ethylene glycol, which are toxic substances used as industrial solvents that can be fatal if ingested even in small amounts, the World Health Organization said in January 2023.
India subsequently cancelled the production licence for Marion Biotech, which manufactured the cough syrups.
During the same period, at least 70 children died in Gambia from acute kidney failure after consuming another syrup imported from India.
In Indonesia, another syrup in similar containers caused the deaths of more than 200 children between 2022 and 2023.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
Featured Video Of The Day
Preparations For 'Bahuda Yatra' Of Lord Jagannath Underway
Inside Indian Syrup-Linked Deaths Trial In Uzbekistan: A Bribery Angle Uzbekistan Syrup Deaths: Noida Firm's Licence Cancelled By Uttar Pradesh Uzbekistan Syrup Deaths: Process Initiated To Cancel Noida Firm's Licence Trainee IAS Officer Puja Khedkar Recalled To Academy, Training Put On Hold Trump's Vice President Pick Reveals How His Hindu Wife Helped Him What Trump Rally Shooter Did On Last Day Of His Life 22 Killed In Israeli Strikes On Gaza School, Petrol Station: Hamas 2 Tiger Cubs Rescued After Train Accident In Madhya Pradesh Chhattisgarh SET Admit Card 2024 Released: Check Steps To Download Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.