The Karnataka Food Safety and Drug Administration cancelled 16 drug licenses and suspended eight others following an August 18 raid that uncovered an illegal pharmaceutical repacking operation at a Bidadi farmhouse. According to the state drug enforcement wing, officials seized low-cost medicines, machinery, and printing materials valued at approximately Rs 5.05 crore during the operation in Bengaluru South district.
Bidadi Farmhouse Raid and Seizure Details
Investigators discovered an unlicensed facility in Kurubarakeranahalli where operators procured cheap medications from neighboring states and repackaged them into new vials. According to department releases, the suspects relabeled the low-cost drugs as expensive life-saving medications produced by multinational corporations, including products bearing the Pfizer brand name. The counterfeit packaging featured QR and scanning codes that proved non-functional during official verification.
The seized inventory carries an estimated value of Rs 4.91 crore, alongside production equipment and printing supplies. Laboratory analysis will determine the chemical composition, sterility, and potency of the recovered samples. Officials warned that these counterfeit products pose severe public health risks because spurious drugs frequently contain incorrect ingredients, lack active pharmaceutical ingredients entirely, or include potentially harmful substances.
Licensing Actions and Supply Chain Crackdown
The regulatory fallout extends beyond the initial production site to actors across the distribution network. According to the Karnataka FDA, authorities have initiated criminal proceedings under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940. Section 17B classifies fake and counterfeit medicines as spurious drugs, while Section 27 prescribes stringent penalties, including fines and rigorous imprisonment for manufacturing, stocking, or distributing them.
As part of the ongoing enforcement sweep, the state regulator cancelled 16 licenses held by retailers and wholesalers allegedly tied to the distribution network. Another eight licenses face suspension. Notably, the license of M/s Pfizer C & F Depot in Nelamangala taluk, Bengaluru Rural district, was suspended due to alleged non-cooperation with the Special Investigation Team probe.
Special Investigation Team and Regulatory Response
Investigators also recovered 30 boxes of expired medicines at targeted locations, raising concerns that expired stock re-entered the legitimate supply chain. The Karnataka FDA blocked the batch numbers of all seized medications on its official portal to halt further distribution. The physical evidence, including machinery and print materials, will be presented before the JMFC court in Bengaluru South.
Health Minister U.T. Khader announced that a dedicated Special Investigation Team—comprising personnel from the drug department, police force, and commercial tax department—is expanding the inquiry to trace the entire supply chain. According to Khader, authorities have also suspended specific officials as part of the internal review. State health regulators advise consumers to purchase prescription drugs exclusively from licensed pharmacies accompanied by valid tax invoices, and to report suspicious packaging anomalies or non-functional QR codes immediately.