Advertisements that mislead consumers by promising fair skin or offering cure for hair loss and infertility in women, enhanced sexual performance, increasing brain capacity among others will attract jail term upto five years and a fine up to Rs 50 lakhs as per the draft of Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) (Amendment) Bill, 2020.
The proposed legislation, drafted by the Union Health Ministry, has also widened its ambit to cover from print media to electronic media, the internet and websites besides making several additions to the list of diseases, disorders, conditions covered in the existing Act.
The proposal for the amendments follows concerns raised by the Advertising Standards Council of India, industry watchdog, from time to time, alleging that in the absence of the proper legal ambit the gullible consumers were being taken for a ride by the unscrupulous advertisers.
The Draft Act, which is available on the website of the Ministry for public comments, says that medicines, "magic remedies" and products to cure any of 78 diseases, disorders, conditions named in the draft should not be advertised, a senior health ministry official explained.
Prohibition of advertisements include those claiming treatment of AIDS, encephalitis, drugs or treatment for sexual impotence, premature ejaculation and spermatorrhoea, AIDS, improvement of memory, improvement in height of kids/adults, improvement in size of sexual organ, duration of sexual performance and disorders of menstrual flow hysteria.
The other advertisements which have been banned under the draft are on claims on power to rejuvenate, obesity, maintenance or improvement of the capacity of the human being for sexual pleasure, insanity, increase in brain capacity and improvement of memory and improvement in height of children/adults.
As per the draft, the first- time convicted will be given jail term upto two years and a fine up to Rs 10 lakh as opposed to the existing provisions of six months' jail time and an unspecified fine, for second conviction, jail term will increase to five years and a fine up to Rs 50 lakh.
The draft bill also proposes an expansion of definition of an advertisement. It says, "any audio or visual publicity, representation, endorsement or pronouncement made by means of light, sound, smoke, gas, print, electronic media, internet or website and includes any notice, circular, label, wrapper, invoice, banner, poster or such other documents.
The ASCI in its periodical reports has listed dozens of misleading advertisements that violate the Drugs and Magic Remedies Act. These advertisements have made claims related to asthma, cancer, diabetes, increased height, obesity and sexual performance among other health and cosmetic conditions.
The Drugs and Magic Remedies Act, 1954, is intended to prevent gullible or vulnerable members of the public from being exploited through advertisements for drugs or cosmetic products for certain health or cosmetic disorders, said the official.