Is Dextromethorphan banned in India?

Dextromethorphan is the most common non-opioid cough suppressant in Indian syrups, and it is not banned.

The rumour dates from October 2025. Children in Madhya Pradesh died after taking Coldrif, a syrup contaminated with diethylene glycol, and Rajasthan reported deaths linked to a dextromethorphan syrup supplied under its free-medicine scheme by Kayson Pharma. Rajasthan halted distribution of all 19 Kayson products on 4 October 2025; the syrup later tested negative for diethylene glycol and the deaths were attributed to dosing in very young children. Amid state advisories, posts claimed that dextromethorphan had been banned nationally. On 8 October 2025 the Press Information Bureau's fact-check unit said there was no such ban, and All India Radio carried the denial.

What the government did do was warn about age. The Directorate General of Health Services advised on 4 October 2025 that cough syrups should not be prescribed or dispensed to children under two, and should be avoided under five unless clearly needed.

Some dextromethorphan combinations have been prohibited on therapeutic-justification grounds: the five-ingredient syrup of dextromethorphan with chlorpheniramine, ammonium chloride, sodium citrate and menthol in the August 2024 list, and several bromhexine or chlorpheniramine syrups containing it in the June 2023 list. Those are specific formulations; the individual entries should be checked against the Gazette before being quoted.