A 45-year-old man was arrested by the Commissioner’s Task Force, Shamshabad Zone, for allegedly procuring and selling restricted Oxytocin injections to dairy farmers in and around Hyderabad.

The accused, Attheni Krishna, a dairy farm operator from Mankhal village in Rangareddy district, was apprehended during a raid conducted by the task force. Police seized 173 bottles Oxytocin injection, amounting to 43.250 litres, valued at ₹50,000.

Officials said the accused was allegedly involved in selling the restricted veterinary drug to dairy farmers illegally at inflated prices.

“Krishna had been running a dairy farm and a cattle feed shop named Srikrishna Cattle Feed at Tukkuguda for nearly 15 years,” said an officer from the Task Force.

He explained that Krishna came into contact around five to six years ago with a supplier identified as Khaled Ali alias Chatru Singh, who allegedly procured bulk quantities of Oxytocin injections from Gujarat and supplied them at ₹50 per bottle.

“He allegedly sold the injections to local dairy farmers for ₹250 to ₹300 per bottle, making substantial profits. The drug is allegedly used to induce buffaloes to release more milk.

Another accused, Suresh of Tukkuguda, was a regular customer who allegedly purchased the injections for use on dairy cattle. Both Suresh and supplier Khaled Ali were absconding,” added the officer.

Based on a tip-off, the task force apprehended Krishna and later handed him over to the Pahadishareef police station for further action. Police said efforts were underway to trace and arrest the absconding accused.

Officials warned that the misuse of Oxytocin can cause reproductive complications, reduced fertility, uterine stress and infections in animals.

They added that milk from animals administered with the injections could pose health risks to consumers, including hormonal imbalance, early puberty in children, reproductive complications and other long-term health issues.