Staff Report
LAHORE: The overall death toll spurred by the reaction of heart medicines at Punjab Institute of Cardiology (PIC) surged to 72, SAMAA reports Wednesday.

Meantime, Punjab Health Department issued notification regarding the post mortem of the people killed by drug reaction.

The recent death was of a heart patient Bilqis Begum, 50, a resident of Lahore area of Sandah. Her condition worsened this morning at Mayo Hospital.

The police and district administration are going to each doorstep in entire province to collect back the PIC-offered medicines on directives given by Punjab government. Also, the suspicious medicines are being captured from markets as well.

A report on the medicines recovered thus far has been sent to the commissioner.

The provincial government announced recompense money for the bereaved families and sent abroad the medicine samples.

The steering committee set up to probe the issue has termed it a calamity. The committee chairman Khawaja Salman Rafiq said the provincial government was forced to buy medicines from the companies listed by federal government.

He said the plan is being formulated for future purchase of the medicines, adding the suspicious have been taken back from 9,000 patients. SAMAA