IB, police trail hoarders of Remdesivir

New Delhi: From Intelligence Bureau (IB) to various State police organisations, almost all major law enforcing agencies in the country are trailing criminal gangs, peddlers, hoarders, stockists and black marketeers, suspected of amassing doses of Remdesivir, the most potent drug for treating coronavirus. In UP and MP, special squads have been formed while in Maharashtra and Gujarat, police commissioners of several districts are working round the clock to prevent pilferage of the wonder drug.

"Our STF teams and district police squads have busted several modules in the State, arresting more than 46 people accused of hoarding Remdesivir and even medical oxygen cylinders," said Prashant Kumar, Additional Director General of Police (ADG), Law and Order, Uttar Pradesh, where acute shortage of Remdesivir resulted in deaths of many patients. Lure of huge profit margins, often five times of the actual value of a Remdesivir vial, have even tempted hospital staff to dupe patient.

"We unearthed an ongoing racket in a prominent medical college, where ward boys were selling Remdesivir in black market. The medical staff administered distilled water injections to patients, and instead sold their genuine Remdesivir injections at a whopping price of Rs 25,000," an SP rank officer said. There have been similar complaints from attendants of patients in other private hospitals too."

On involvement of local distributors and stockists of such drugs, ADG, UP, Prashant Kumar, said that nexus between certain chemists' shops or a few stockists cannot be ruled out. "We are verifying specific inputs, where stockists concerned with distribution of these injections are involved in hoarding. Once booked we will slap NSA (National Security Act) against such culprits," the ADG said.

Each injection of Remdesivir costing around Rs 3,400 to Rs 5,400 is being sold for over Rs 30,000 to 40,000 in black market. In Nagpur, the acute shortage of these life-saving drugs saw a steep rise in the prices. The police arrested five persons in Nagpur's Beltarodi area on Saturday for selling Remdesivir at price of Rs 45,000 per vial in the black market.

Obviously, the hoarders were making profit ten times higher than the actual MRP of the injection. "As the gap between supply and sudden demand of this potent drug has widened, immediate audit of stocks of distributors, stockists and big retailers is necessary. The government agencies have to plug the pilferage of this drug at all costs," said Rajnikant Mishra, former Joint Director of CBI and DG of Border Security Force, adding, "it's a shame that some people have stooped so low to steal life-saving drugs.