Gambia deaths: Firm under lens saw 16% rise in turnover last year

Bhartesh Singh Thakur

Chandigarh, October 19

Sonepat-based Maiden Pharmaceuticals Limited, which is under the scanner over 66-plus acute kidney injury (AKI) deaths in Gambia due to its four syrups, posted a rise of 16 per cent in its revenue in 2021.

The firm, which started operations on November 22, 1990, posted a Rs 33.57-crore turnover on March 31, 2020. It jumped to Rs 38.95 crore on March 31, 2021, as per

the Registrar of Companies (ROC) portal.

The firm’s expenses on cost of material, changes in the inventories of finished goods, work-in-progress, employees’ benefits, finance costs and depreciation etc were Rs 38.80 crore in 2020-21, while the amount was Rs 33.42 crore in 2019-20.

A major expense of the firm is the cost of raw material (Rs 33.42 crore in 2020-21). The profit before tax was Rs 15.68 lakh at end of financial year 2020-21 with a rise of 8.4 per cent. The profit before tax was Rs 14.46 lakh in 2019-20. However, the profit after tax was Rs 5.82 lakh in 2020-21, while it was Rs 11.57 lakh in 2019-20.

As per the firm’s website, it has a presence in a number of African countries, a few European nations and a number of Southeast Asian countries.

Firm’s earnings from foreign exchange were Rs 20.78 crore in 2019-20 and “nil” in 2020-21, as per the balance sheet. The equities and liabilities of the firm reduced from Rs 21.91 crore in 2019-20 to

Rs 21.70 crore in 2020-21.

The company has a plant at Kundli (Haryana) and its corporate office is at Pitampura, Delhi. Delhi businessman Naresh Kumar Goyal, who is a Director of Maiden Pharmaceuticals Limited, has 47.2 per cent share in the firm. As per the ROC portal, as on March 31, 2021, other shareholders included Vinod Kumar Goyal (18.85% share), Manish Goyal (10.88% share), Vivek Goyal (10.87% share) and Kapil Goyal (12.19% share).

The director’s remunerations were Rs 21 lakh in 2019-20 and 2020-21.

Meanwhile, the Office of the IG, Gambia, through its crime management coordination unit, is probing the AKI deaths.

In a statement on social media, the Gambia police said, “It was established that Atlantic Pharmaceuticals Company was granted permission to import medicines and medical-related products in Gambia.”

Atlantic Pharmaceuticals Company got syrups from Maiden Pharmaceuticals Limited. It ordered 15,000 bottles of Makoff baby cough syrup, 15,000 bottles of Magrip N Cold syrup, 10,000 bottles of Promethazine oral solution BP and 10,000 bottles of Kofexmalin baby cough syrup.

“The deaths of these children are associated with four contaminated Indian-made baby syrups…,” said the Gambia police in a statement on October 14.

Financial meter

• Rs 33.57 crore turnover on March 31, 2020
• Rs 38.95 crore turnover on March 31, 2021
• Rs 11.57 lakh profit after tax in 2019-20
• Rs 5.82 lakh profit after tax in 2020-21