Dehradun, Jul 18 (PTI) The Uttarakhand Special Task Force (STF) on Friday arrested the owner of a factory in here that manufactured fake medicines by copying products of reputed pharmaceutical companies, officials said.

The accused, Devi Dayal Gupta, owner of Dr Mittal Laboratories, had been absconding for a long time and was arrested from Dehradun, Senior Superintendent of Police (STF) Navneet Singh Bhullar said.

Also Read | PM Kisan Samman Nidhi Yojana 20th Installment Date: Eligible Farmers To Receive INR 2000 Into Their Bank Accounts on This Date, Know Steps To Check Your Name in Beneficiary List.

Gupta is a resident of Ashok Vihar Phase-2 in Delhi. With his arrest, four members of the gang, including its kingpin, have been held so far, he said.

On June 1, an accused, Santosh Kumar, was caught in the Selaqui area with a large quantity of fake packaging boxes, labels and QR codes of wrappers of medicines of leading companies such as Glenmark, Ipca Laboratories, Intas Pharma, Alkem Health Science, Dr Reddy's Laboratories and Cadila Pharmaceuticals, the SSP said.

Also Read | Ladki Bahin Yojana July 2025 Installment Date: When Will Maharashtra Women Beneficiaries Receive 13th Kist of INR 1,500 Under Mukhyamantri Majhi Ladki Bahin Scheme?.

Later, the STF arrested the kingpin Naveen Bansal and another accused, Aditya Kala. During Bansal's interrogation, he revealed that fake medicines were made in Gupta's factory in Sahaspur area and sent to places including Haryana and Rajasthan, Bhullar said.

From 2021 until the case came to light this year, Gupta allegedly manufactured 1.42 crore tablets and around two lakh capsules, which were supplied to Bansal's fake firms -- Reelin Pharmatech and B Chem Biotech.

These were then packed in wrappers of reputed brands and distributed to several cities across north India.

The fake drugs included Pantoprazole 40, Diclosin SP, Levocetirizine, Prochlorperazine, Amlodipine and Telmisartan tablets, the STF said.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)