It has reportedly issued a warning to all Ayurvedic, Siddha, Unani and homeopathic pharmaceutical companies after the Supreme Court restrained Patanjali Ayurveda Ltd in connection with a misleading advertising case. It has been reported.
according to news 18, the Ayush Ministry issued a warning and called on pharmaceutical companies to “strictly comply with labeling and advertising regulations.” Failure to comply with regulations may result in legal action, the report added.
A statement from the ministry, obtained by News18, said the warning makes “unsubstantiated” claims or displays false information, such as featuring a “green logo” that claims to be “100% vegetarian.” It added that it was related to products that or falsely stating that the drug is “approved or certified by the Department.”
Also read: Patanjali accused in court: SC pulls up company and warns FMCG companies for misleading advertisements
“Misleading claims or advertisements in any form or on any platform are subject to legal action by the competent authorities.The advisory also detailed all laws and regulations covering misleading advertising in the country.
According to reports, the ministry has ordered state drug licensing authorities to test all medicines that claim to be “certified or approved by the Ministry of Ayush” on their labels or advertisements. He also called on authorities to ensure compliance.
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“The Ayush Ministry has no role in granting manufacturing licenses.”
The advisory states that approval by the State Drug Licensing Board “should not be construed as approval by the Ministry of Ayush,” the report added.
“The Ministry of Ayush has informed us that some pharmaceutical companies in the Ministry of Ayush have included ‘certified or approved by the Ministry of Ayush’ on the labels of their medicines and products or in their advertisements in print and electronic media.” The notice reports. read.
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Additionally, News 18 reported that the ministry has clarified that it has no role in granting manufacturing licenses or approvals for Ayush medicines and products.
It even warned that any future such claims on labels or advertisements would trigger “consequential legal action against the alleged manufacturer by the Ministry of Ayush.”
Also read: ‘Apology comes after…’: Supreme Court rejects Ramdev’s apology in Patanjali misleading advertising case
The advisory further added that licenses issued by state authorities are only permissions to manufacture or sell specific medicines or products subject to fulfillment of the conditions under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940.
The recommendation was also sent to the National Pharmacovigilance and Coordination Center, which monitors and designs the safety profile of medicines, including issuing warnings in case a medicine reports new side effects.
Also read: Baba Ramdev and Acharya Balkrishna apologize unconditionally for misleading Patanjali advertisement
According to News 18, the Center has been asked to “ensure that any such claims of approval or certification by the Ministry of Ayush are reported to the concerned National Licensing Authority on the tip-off to the Ministry of Ayush”.
The warning comes after yoga guru Ramdev of Patanjali Ayurveda and his close aide Balkrishna went to the Supreme Court over advertisements published by the company that made exaggerated claims about the medicinal properties of its products. This came after an “unconditional and unconditional apology” was made.
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