Hyderabad: Only public sector units would be allowed to manufacture Oxytocin, a hormone which functions as a neurotransmitter. A circular from the Drug Controller General of India said the private units would not be allowed to manufacture or distribute the drug due to its wide-scale abuse in the dairy and horticulture markets. The proposal left the Federation of Pharma Entrepreneurs (FOPE) unhappy. The circular said only public sector units would develop and distribute this drug. Oxytocin injections were used during childbirth in humans as it helped control bleeding after childbirth and treat incomplete or inevitable abortions.
But there was rampant misuse in dairy farms where it was given to cattle to increase milk production. Oxytocin, also called love hormones, were being imported as the present production worth '50-60 crore was not found to the sufficient for domestic market. President of FOPE B.R. Sikri said, “If the proposal materialises there will be only one sole distributor of the drug in the country. We need stricter actions but that does not mean restricting production within. The drug is available in the country in various brand names and has a market of Rs 50-60 crore. With one single distributor the present day demands can’t be met.”
The Central Drugs Stan-dard Control Organisation mooted tougher regulation like restriction on imports, a policy for use in humans and animals and also barcoding of products in the open market. These restrictions were worked out and after multiple studies it showed that the sustained use of oxytocin injections led to hormonal imbalance in humans and also ruined the reproductive system of animals and reduced their life span.
“The misuse is because there is no robust veterinary policy and treatment guidelines for animals. Owing to this, there are issues. The government has to streamline this sector and also there must be stricter vigilance,” Mr Sikri said. A senior officer in the drugs control department in TS said, “The government move is meant to curb the misuse but at the same time demand must be assessed. The demand is high and that is the reason there is skepticism about its actual implementation.” The World Health Organisation reported that five women died every hour from complications developed during childbirth owing to heavy blood loss in India. This meant that oxytocin injection to control bleeding was required.
