Government bans popular painkiller to save vultures
toxicity to vultures, reported TOI. Researchers at the Indian Veterinary Research Institute (IVRI) in Izatnagar, Bareilly, conducted experiments revealing the drug's harmful effects on scavenger species.
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In a controlled experiment in Haryana, two Himalayan griffon vultures were exposed to doses of Nimesulide similar to those found in the carcasses of livestock treated with the drug.
According to the TOI report, the vultures that received Nimesulide showed elevated uric acid levels, a well-known indicator of kidney failure, and both died within two days. «This rapid effect is consistent with poisoning caused by other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) like diclofenac and ketoprofen,» said a researcher involved in the study.
Dr. Abhijeet Pawde, who led the research during 2023-24, stressed the importance of the findings. «It's time such toxic drugs were banned so that these species can be saved from extinction. Our research demonstrated that Nimesulide is highly lethal to vultures when they consume carcasses containing the drug,» he said, reported TOI.
The Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO), under the Department of Health and Family Welfare, enforced the ban on Monday through a gazette notification under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940. Despite this, TOI noted that
