Aurangabad, April 16:
The City Police have busted a gang black-marketing the Remdesivir injections on Friday. The arrested included two medicine shop owners and a class four employee of the District Civil Hospital. The arrested have been identified as medicine shop owners Mandar Bhalerao (29, Shivajinagar) and Abhijeet Namdev Taur, and class four employee of the DCH Anil Omprakash Bohate. Recently, the Remdesivir injections were stolen from DCH and it were being sold to the patients in higher prices. Accordingly, the Pundliknagar police laid a trap and busted the gang involved in the black-marketing.
Remdesivir injections are playing important part in treating the patients in the second Corona wave. The relatives of the patients are hapless as they could not find the injections in the market. They wander from place to place for injections. Some have started black marketing of the injections.
Meanwhile, the Pundliknagar police received the information that Mandar Bhalerao is providing the Remdesivir injection in higher prices. He was selling each injection at around Rs 15,000.
Accordingly, the police and the Food and Drug Administration laid a trap on Thursday night. The police called Mandar as customer for the injection. He asked them to come to the Sutgirni Chowk with Rs 15,000 for the injection. The team including API G B Sonawane, head constable Ramesh Sangle and drug inspector R M Bajaj arrested and investigated him. He confessed and told that he received three injections from DCH employee Anil Bohote. He also told that Abhijeet Namdev Taur is also involved in this racket. The police seized three remdesivir injections from him.
Bohote works in the DCH, he confessed that the injections seized by the police were from the DCH. The police are investigating where any other accused are involved in this racket. They are also investigating that how many such injections have been sold by the gang and whether other employees are also involved. Bhalerao said that one of the injections was brought from Beed and hence it is likely that the racket is active across the state.
Drug inspector, Rajgopal Bajaj said that the price of Remdesivir injection is Rs 933, but it was being sold at Rs 15,000. The FDA will cancel the drug licenses of both the shop owners.