Maharashtra: Distilleries Get FDA Nod To Keep Making Sanitisers Till December

PSM News /

MUMBAI, 23 JUNE 2020:

 

Around 108 distilleries in the state that had got a special nod to manufacture hand sanitizers at the start of the pandemic in March have been allowed to continue till December. Foreseeing rise in demand for sanitizers after the lockdown is relaxed, the state FDA last week extended licences till December 31.

 

Following an order from the ministry of consumer affairs, the FDA extended permissions that were to expire on June 30. Currently, 252 manufacturers, including 108 distilleries, produce nearly 1.3 crore litres of sanitizers a month though their production capacity is nearly double, the FDA said. Nearly 80 lakh litres of sanitizer was consumed in the state in April. Data for May is being compiled.

 

Among distilleries that got the nod included sugar mills from western Maharashtra. Distilleries that made liquor were told to pump in resources to augment sanitizer production after the outbreak. Chief of FDA, Arun Unhale, confirmed the development and said that stricter surveillance will be now be done for quality control. “As the economy opens up and more people step out to work, we will see a rise in demand,” Unhale said.

 

Since March, Unhale claimed, the FDA has carried out nearly 68 raids to check quality of sanitizers, PPEs, masks, among others. “So far only three sanitizer samples from Aurangabad failed quality checks,” he said. FDA officials said Pune has the most manufacturers (57), followed by Nashik (18), Thane (7), Nagpur (4) among others. Officials said they have upped vigilance against fake sanitizers since last week after an alert from CBI about an Interpol warning of racketeers using toxic methanol to make sanitizers. “We randomly picked up samples from the market to test,” said a senior FDA official. “In prior quality checks we didn’t find any toxic material... Violations are mainly about lesser quantity of ethanol,” said the official.

 

A distillery owner said they are happy that permission has been extended. “Though there is demand, only 40% of licence holders are producing it currently. There is talk of export possibility,” he said. The Times Of India