New Delhi, June 16 -- In a major move to tighten regulatory control over the distribution of liquid medications, the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has amended the Drugs Rules, 1945, withdrawing the licensing exemption previously granted for the sale of cough syrups in small villages.

The amendment, notified via Gazette Notification G.S.R. 927 (E), omits the word "Syrup" from Schedule K, Serial No. 13, Entry 7, effectively ending an era where smaller habitations could retail these formulations without stringent oversight, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said in a statement.

Before this crucial regulatory intervention, Schedule K of the Drugs Rules allowed the sale of cough syrups in villages with a population of f...