Legal action begins against 18 officials in Avastin injection scandal

LAHORE: The Punjab government has concluded the investigation into the Avastin eye injection scandal that led to the vision loss of several people in the province.

As per the findings, action under the PEDA Act has been initiated against the drug controllers and government employees after the allegations proved against them.

After three and a half months, the Punjab government has finalized the investigation report concerning the eye injection scandal. The allegations against the drug controllers and government employees have been substantiated.

The investigation report was submitted to the chief minister of Punjab, and the committee has also initiated action against the accused under the PEDA Act.

The report reveals that 18 drug controllers, deputy drug controllers, and pharmacists were involved in the Avastin injection scam. The injection was transported to various cities via cargo, affecting the eyesight of 66 people who received the injections. The injection was utilized in 15 private hospitals in Punjab, including in a government hospital in Jhang.

According to the report, all the drug controllers failed to prevent the injection’s use within their jurisdictions. Five people received injections in Lahore and got blind, and the illegal transfer of the injection from Lahore to other cities persisted. The drug controller and pharmacist of Lahore were unable to halt the preparation of the injections without proper licencing.

The report indicated that five people lost their syesight in Kasur, four in Jhang, three in Rahim Yar Khan, three in Gujranwala, six in Khanewal, eight in Bahawalpur, and 19 in Multan.

The report also mentioned that 10 citizens were identified from Vihari, with one each from Shikhopura, Sialkot, and Rajanpur.

The government employees involved have been given a deadline of seven days to submit their responses. If they fail to do so, penalties will be imposed under the Act, the report said.

It is crucial to note that Avastin injections, administered to rectify retinal damage in several diabetic patients in the districts of Lahore, Kasur, and Jhang, resulted in severe infection, causing vision loss for many.

The issue of endophthalmitis, a life-threatening disease in diabetic patients, surfaced when numerous cases of drug reactions were reported in Kasur district. Initial investigations also unveiled problems in the repackaging and supply of the drug Avastin, as well as in the cold chain system, leading to the disease outbreak in Punjab.

In Novermber, the Punjab government announced its decision to lift the ban on the use of Avastin injections, which was previously suspended after reported cases of blurry vision among patients in the province