Solapur, Maharashtra — The Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA), working with local police, carried out a raid in Solapur on August 12 and seized unauthorised medical termination of pregnancy (MTP) kits from a person allegedly selling abortion medicines through an online portal, the regulator said on August 14.
Action in Solapur part of wider state probe
The Solapur action formed part of simultaneous operations by the FDA in Nagpur and Solapur that targeted the unauthorised purchase and sale of medical abortion kits such as Clear Kit and Prega End. According to an FDA statement, officials recovered an unauthorised stock of MTP kits in Solapur valued at ₹9,532. The stock had reportedly been sourced from outside Maharashtra.
The FDA said the probe also revealed the involvement of an online portal; company directors are among eight people for whom cases have been registered in the broader operation. The regulator did not name all individuals linked to the Solapur seizure in its statement, but said the online portal’s role emerged during the investigation.
"The action followed information about unauthorised storage and sale of the medicines,"
Related action in Nagpur: clinic raid and arrests
The FDA statement said the Nagpur office, together with police, carried out a surprise inspection at Dr Sachin Marghade’s Shree Sai Clinic in Vinoba Bhave Nagar. Officials reportedly found a large quantity of medicines being stored for unauthorised sale and discovered that labels and batch numbers on Prega End and Misopril kits had been removed or concealed.
Police laid a trap at the Nagpur location and arrested two persons alleged to be part of the supply chain; they were found with a total of 50 MTP kits in their bags. Unauthorised medicines — including Alprazolam and Sildenafil — worth ₹45,649 were seized from the clinic. A case was registered against Dr Sachin Marghade and three others at the Yashodhara Nagar police station under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, the FDA said.
Legal and public-health implications for Solapur
Authorities said the medicines recovered in Solapur had been procured from outside the state and were being sold through an online marketplace. The FDA’s action highlights overlaps between unregulated online commerce and the illegal distribution of prescription-only and controlled drugs.
- Seizures in Solapur: unauthorised MTP kits valued at ₹9,532.
- Seizures in Nagpur: unauthorised medicines (including Alprazolam, Sildenafil) valued at ₹45,649; 50 MTP kits found on two arrested persons.
- Cases registered: eight people booked across the operations; directors of an online portal were named among those charged.
| Location | Items seized | Value (₹) |
|---|---|---|
| Solapur | MTP kits (unauthorised) | 9,532 |
| Nagpur | MTP kits; Alprazolam; Sildenafil | 45,649 |
The FDA statement did not specify whether any arrests were made in Solapur at the time its release was filed. It said police and FDA teams conducted the inspections on August 12 and filed cases afterwards; the broader statement on the bust was issued from Mumbai on August 14.
Public-health advocates and clinicians caution that sale of medical abortion medicines outside regulated channels risks unsafe use and complications, and central and state rules restrict supply of such drugs to licensed medical facilities and pharmacies on prescription. The FDA’s action seeks to curb an illegal supply chain that, according to the regulator, included deliberate concealment of batch information and online facilitation.
Solapur residents who obtain medicines online are advised to ensure prescriptions and to buy from licensed pharmacies. The FDA and local police are continuing investigations and are searching for additional suspects and suppliers linked to the network, the regulator said.
Reporting from Solapur.
