In its ongoing campaign to curtail misleading advertisements with false health claims, the Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has scrutinised 4,304 cases of misleading advertisements of products in print and electronic media making false claims like reducing obesity, increasing stamina, treating impotency, height enhancement and fair skin or complexion among others.

It found 369 such cases which were in contravention to Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable advertisement) Act (DMR Act) 1954 under the provisions of Section 3(d) and Section 4.  

DMR Act seeks to curtail undesirable advertisements pertaining to drugs and magic remedies because advertising is considered to encourage self medication of harmful drugs. The Act lists the diseases and disorders in respect of which advertising is banned under Section 3 of the Drugs and Magic Remedies Act, 1954.

Based on the cases detected between March 2017 and February 2018, it served 389 show cause notices to the manufacturers. Maharashtra FDA in its notice stated that advertisement of ayurvedic products like ‘Razor Slim’ and ‘Play Win’ capsule published in the print media is objectionable under the DMR Act. The advertisement makes false claims that the said products are for the condition of treatment of obesity and increasing stamina respectively.

According to the notice, the regulator has requested and directed the publications to immediately stop broadcasting of said advertisement in the larger interest of public.

The state FDA served 1,434 notices to various print and electronic media across the state in the fiscal year 2013-14 under the DMR Act. As per official sources, over 90 per cent of notices served are to the electronic media alone.

In its raid for non-compliance to DMR Act, the state regulator found that ayurvedic drugs were mixed with allopathic medicines in contravention to the provisions of the DMR Act, 1954.

The objectionable advertisement of the ayurvedic drugs were also being published in newspapers where the drugs were shown to cure ailments like cancer, hormonal disturbances, female genital tract problems, erectile dysfunction, premature ejaculation, enhancing the breast cup size, etc.

The main objective of DMR Act is to control the advertisement of drugs in certain cases and to prohibit the advertisement connected with remedies alleged to posses magic qualities and to provide for matters connected therewith.