Stock of life-saving drug found in garbage bin

A substantial stock of the life-saving drug Heparin, an anticoagulant or blood-thinner, from stock belonging to the Maharashtra
government was found in a garbage bin near a market at Ashirwad Nagar on Sunday evening. The 65 vials kept in three boxes wrapped in plastic, came to the notice of local residents after street urchins and ragpickers created a ruckus around it.

Sakkardara police station was approached by some alert citizens, who seized the drugs from the garbage site. The packs indicated that the medicine was exclusively for use in Maharashtra government hospitals. The package contained 65 Heparin injection bottles of 5ml each, costing around Rs 149.50 per vial.

Police said that the drug, having expiry date of 2011, seems to have been supplied recently. The cops are trying to get details of this stock from the supplier in Hyderabad. "We have consulted senior medical practitioners and found out that the Heparin injections are used by doctors in emergency situations," said a senior officer of Sakkardara police station.

Apart from the vials, police also found a chit of paper with the name and Trimurti Nagar address of a senior educationist in the package. Police said that the person was summoned to the police station for questioning. The person, who is a PhD in chemistry, had worked as a registrar of RTM Nagpur University before he joined a local engineering college. "He identified the handwriting on the chit carrying his name and address as his own, but had no clue how it came to be with the medicine. The person claimed he usually gave such chits if someone wanted to meet him at his residence," said the officer.

Sakkardara police, which are yet to register any offence in the matter, have recorded the statement of the person. "He has promised to make himself available whenever we need him in connection with this enquiry," said the officer.

Cops suspect that the medicine may have been stolen from some wholesaler or big city hospital. Medical practitioners said that this drug needs to be stored in refrigerators, and some stockist may have thrown it away if it had gone bad due to the heat.