AYUSH minister Sarbananda Sonowal. Photo: PTI
New Delhi: Over 1,400 misleading advertisements of Ayush products and services have been registered from April 2014 to July 2021 on a portal of the Department of Consumer Affairs, the government said on Tuesday.
Instances of dubious claims and misleading advertisements of Ayush products have come to the notice of the central government, AYUSH minister Sarbananda Sonowal said in a written reply in Rajya Sabha.
The Pharmacovigilance Centres for Ayurveda, Siddha, Unani and Homeopathy Drugs set up in different parts of the country have reported 18,812 objectionable advertisements from 2018 to December 2021.
On the Grievance Against Misleading Advertisement (GAMA) portal of the Department of Consumer Affairs, 1,416 misleading advertisements of Ayush products and services have been registered from April 2014 to July 2021, Sonowal said in the written reply.
Further, in 2017-19, the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) under MoU with Ministry of Ayush has reported 1,229 misleading advertisements of Ayush products, he said.
Protocols or guidelines are in force to restrict Ayush products of medicinal use with dubious claims and for selling certain medicines under medical supervision.
The Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act, 1954 and Rules there under encompass the provisions for prohibition of misleading advertisements and exaggerated claims of drugs and medicinal substances, including Ayush medicines and for the penalty to be imposed on defaulters.
The governments of states and Union Territories are empowered to enforce the legal provisions under Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 and the Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act, 1954, Sonowal said.
The Pharmacovigilance Centres for Ayurveda, Siddha, Unani and Homeopathy (ASU&H) Drugs set up in different parts of the country under the central sector scheme of the Ministry of Ayush are mandated to monitor and report misleading advertisements to the respective state Drug Licensing Authorities for taking appropriate action under the provisions of Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 and the Drugs & Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act, 1954, he said.