LAHORE: The Punjab government has sent Isotab drug samples of the controversial batch to the local Drug Testing Laboratory only after it received a report from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), London which declared it spurious, it is learnt.

"We thoroughly examined all the record of the DTL and found no specimen of the Isotab drug dispensed to the poor patients under its controversial batch J093", a senior official told Dawn.

Samples of the said drug were sent to the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) from the same batch J093 for screening.

This 'surprise development' surfaced during the visit of National Health Services, UK, Chief Pharmacist Trudi Hilton along with local experts to the DTL on Jail Road on Friday.

The visiting guest has arrived Pakistan to investigate and help the Punjab government in connection with the drugs reaction scam which has claimed lives of over 100 cardiac patients.

Requesting anonymity, the official said Ms Hilton inspected the DTL, examined its record, reviewed the process of medicines' testing and the capacity of the laboratory to screen specimens of drugs.

It was to the utter surprise of Ms Hilton when she inquired about the result of the Isotab drug tested at the DTL and its admin official told her that the said medicine was not processed since the PIC scam surfaced.

When she asked again about the report on Isotab drug, a senior DTL official informed her that the Punjab government had not sent the samples of Isotab, declared substandard by a British laboratory, to the DTL since the contaminated drugs scam surfaced. Initially, the Isotab-20 of Efroze Pharma, Karachi, was declared suspected among other drugs - Cardiovestin 20mg (Mega Pharma), Corcont 5mg (Swiss Pharma), Zafnol 50mg (Zafa Pharma) and Solprin 300mg (Pharma Wise).

Interestingly, the authorities at the Punjab Institute of Cardiology, the Health Department, various committees probing the scam and even the Punjab government had repeatedly announced that samples of the Isotab drug had also been sent to the DTL for analysis.

The DTL official informed the visitors that the laboratory from the day one was facing numerous problems, including an acute shortage of manpower, latest equipments, transport and other necessary infrastructure.

He further informed the guest that each analyst was screening some 800 samples of various drugs.

Screening or analyzing the life-saving drugs was a serious and sensitive procedure but the government was providing huge funds to the forensic lab, he told the visitors.

"Ms Hilton says she will apprise the Punjab chief minister of the state of affairs at the DTL in a meeting scheduled to be held on Saturday (today)," the official said.

She would also discuss various strategies and suggestions in the meeting to avoid recurring of such tragedy in the future, he said.