Is Phenergan banned in India?

Phenergan is Sanofi's brand of promethazine, a first-generation antihistamine used for allergy, nausea, motion sickness and sedation. It is not banned in India, and no Section 26A notification names promethazine on its own.

Two events explain the searches. The first is a combination. Pholcodine + promethazine, sold for cough under brands such as Tixylix, was banned on 10 March 2016 under S.O. 789(E), quashed with the rest of the 344-FDC wave, and then, as a pre-1988 combination, sent for expert review. Reports of the June 2023 order banning 14 older FDCs include pholcodine + promethazine; that entry is flagged for verification. Pholcodine itself has been withdrawn in several countries over an allergy risk with anaesthetics. None of this affects single-ingredient Phenergan.

The second is contamination. In October 2022 the WHO's Alert N°6/2022 named four Maiden Pharmaceuticals syrups linked to child deaths in the Gambia, one of which was a Promethazine Oral Solution. The problem was diethylene glycol in the manufacturer's product, not promethazine as a drug.

Phenergan carries a label contraindication for children under two because of respiratory depression, and the October 2025 DGHS advisory against cough syrups for under-2s reinforces that. Adults can use it as prescribed; it causes drowsiness.