Indian police have launched criminal action against a maker of cough syrup whose product was found to contain dangerous levels of a toxic chemical, following the deaths of ten children suspected to have consumed contaminated medicine.

Known as the "pharmacy of the world", India has faced scrutiny for the quality of its pharmaceutical exports, with its cough syrups being linked to child deaths in Cameroon, Gambia and Uzbekistan over the past few years.

A sample of the syrup, 'Coldrif', among 19 medicines tested after the deaths in the central state of Madhya Pradesh, contained diethylene glycol exceeding permissible limits, the health ministry said on Sunday.

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A criminal case has been registered against the manufacturer, Sresan Pharma, in the southern state of Tamil Nadu, and a doctor who prescribed the medication to some of the deceased children.

"The doctor who wrote the prescription has been arrested," Rajendra Shukla, the deputy chief minister of Madhya Pradesh, told news agency ANI, adding that a criminal case had been registered against the factory.

The company faces accusations of culpable homicide not amounting to murder, adulteration of drugs, and manufacturing, selling, or distributing cosmetics in violation of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act.

Regulatory action has also been taken against a unit of the company, the ministry said, without giving details, and the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation recommended cancellation of its manufacturing license.

Sresan Pharma did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

India supplies 40 per cent of generic medicines used in the United States, 25 per cent of all those used in Britain, and more than 90 per cent of all medicines in many African nations, its drug regulator says.

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