The Selaiyur police on Monday arrested the owner of a medical store in Vengaivaasal near Tambaram on charge of storing medicines past their expiry date.
Based on information given by some residents, the police found that the medicines were kept in a tea stall by the owner of the medical store. After an interrogation by the police and officials of the Drug Control Administration, the store owner, S. Kumar, was arrested.
Elsewhere near Guduvanchery, a pile of empty tablet strips and syrup bottles caused a scare on Saturday morning.
The Guduvanchery police said residents of Kaayarambedu on Nellikuppam Road noticed the pile near a scrap iron shop and alerted them.
The scrap merchant told them that he picked up the medicines from a drug manufacturing unit nearby. Policemen visited the factory and spoke at length with officials at the factory. Officials had told them that on a regular basis, they would destroy unsold medicines past their expiry date.
In the case of tablets and capsules, they would remove them without cutting the strips into which they were packed.
The tablets would then be destroyed. Similarly, they destroyed tonics and syrups without breaking or damaging the bottles.
They would then hand over the empty tablet strips and bottles to scrap iron merchants.
Residents complain
Residents complained to police on Saturday morning that the pile-up of empty medicine bottles was an eyesore.
A foul smell emanated and hence it should be removed immediately. The Guduvanchery police clarified they had not initiated any action against anyone in this connection and that they had passed on information to the Drug Control Administration.
