One held for black marketing of Remdesivir in UP's Noida, 105 vials seized

Amid the reports of shortage of anti-viral drugs across several states, the Uttar Pradesh Police arrested a man in Noida for allegedly black marketing Remdesivir and seized 105 vials of the injection worth more than Rs 1.5 lakh.

As per an official statement issued by Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime) Abhishek Singh, the accused named Rachit Ghai was black-marketing Remdesivir in Noida.

"On April 20, the Crime branch and team of policemen from Noida sector 20 police station arrested a man named Rachit Ghai. This person is a resident of Delhi and from March 2021, he was living in Noida. He was doing black marketing of Remdesivir by bringing the drugs from Delhi and Chandigarh," said DCP Singh.

He added that man has been arrested under Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 and other relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

The Police Commissionerate Gautam Buddh Nagar also tweeted about the case.

"Thana Sector-20 and Crime Branch Team of Noida Police arrested a man named Rachi Ghai for black marketing of Remdesivir injection, 105 vials of Remdesivir injection, Centro car and Rs 1,54,000 were recovered from his possession," said the tweet.

The demand for Remdesivir has increased in India and the hospitals have been grappling with depleting supply of the anti-viral drug amid surging COVID-19 cases.

India, currently witnessing a second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, reported nearly 3 lakh fresh infections in the last 24 hours - the highest since the pandemic broke out last year.

( With inputs from ANI )