Bengaluru chemists write to DCGI, CCI against online drug sellers
In separate letters, the association alleged that a number of online platforms and health-tech startups are violating drug regulations, repackaging prescription medicines and misleading consumers with psychologically manipulative advertisements.
The complaints name several digital medicine sellers including health-tech startups like Blupack and PillUp and alleged that these companies are advertising prescription medicines without proper safeguards, encouraging unsafe buying habits, and in some instances, tampering with medicine packaging in violation of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act.
BDCDA President B Thirunavukkarasu highlighted how online pharmacy chains and unregulated sellers are using social media and apps to advertise prescription drugs. Some of the examples include ads with messages like 'Stop spending your retirement fund on medicines' or 'Order now, 50% off on antibiotics.'
These kinds of promotions, they say, push senior citizens and chronic patients, into risky behaviours like switching their medications based on price, skipping pharmacist consultations, or treating prescription drugs like over-the-counter items.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Mint
7 hours ago
- Mint
Shresth: New national index to boost drug safety across India
New Delhi: The Union health ministry has launched the State Health Regulatory Excellence Index (Shresth) to benchmark and strengthen the systems that regulate drugs in states through a transparent, data-driven framework. The health of all citizens begins with the safety, quality, and effectiveness of the medicines they take, and ensuring their quality is a commitment of the government to every person in India, said Punya Salila Srivastava, Union health secretary in on Tuesday. The Shresth initiative, proposed by the Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO), aims to improve the performance of state drug regulatory authorities nationwide, guaranteeing that drug safety and quality standards are consistently met. During a virtual meeting with health secretaries and drug controllers from various states and Union territories, Srivastava described Shresth as a virtual tool for states to assess their current position and work toward a "maturity certification". She emphasized the crucial role played by states and Union territories in ensuring quality manufacturing and distribution in India and the need to recognize and support their best practices. The new index will enable targeted improvements in human resources, infrastructure, and digitization across states, ensuring drug safety is guaranteed for every Indian, regardless of where they live. The states will be divided into two categories: 'manufacturing states' and primarily distribution states/UTs', and will be ranked accordingly. Manufacturing states will be evaluated on 27 indices across five key areas: human resources, infrastructure, licensing activities, surveillance activities, and responsiveness. Primarily distribution states will be evaluated on 23 indices. The data for the predefined metrics will be submitted by states to the CDSCO by the 25th of each month, with the scores being calculated and shared with all states and union territories on the 1st of the following month. Dr. Rajeev Singh Raghuvanshi, the Drug Controller General of India, said this index will help to harmonize regulatory processes across the country. It will also promote cross-learning of best practices and a collaborative spirit among states. The CDSCO will facilitate the sharing of success stories from top-performing states to encourage collaboration and the transfer of knowledge. Representatives from the states pointed out that Shresth is not just a scorecard but a roadmap for states to ensure safe and effective drugs and medical devices. They also noted that a uniform implementation of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, along with the sharing of best practices and a structured knowledge-sharing platform, will help ensure that all states have a functional regulatory system. Srivastava also highlighted India's achievement of WHO maturity level-3 status for vaccines, stressing that the next step is to elevate medicines to the same global standard, reinforcing India's role as the 'pharmacy of the world'. Mint on 9 February reported that about the government's plan on developing drug regulatory index.
News18
13 hours ago
- News18
Agenda to revise Schedule H of Drug Rules considered: Govt
Last Updated: New Delhi, Aug 12 (PTI) The Drugs Technical Advisory Board (DTAB) considered the agenda to revise the Schedule H of the Drug Rules, 1945 at its 92nd meeting held in April, the government told Parliament on Tuesday. In a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for Health Anupriya Patel said the DTAB is a statutory body constituted under section 5 of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 and the Rules thereunder to advise the Centre and state governments on technical matters arising out of the administration of the Act and to carry out the other functions assigned to it by the Act. The minister was responding to a question on whether the Centre is planning an overhaul of the medicines listed under Schedule H of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act. Patel said the sale and distribution of drugs, including Schedule H drugs, are regulated by state licensing authorities (SLAs) under the Drugs Rules, 1945. Further, the sale of Schedule H drugs without the prescription of a registered medical practitioner is a punishable offence and the SLAs are empowered to take action for the same. The minister said the state drugs controllers and other stakeholders have been sensitised about concerns regarding the sale of prescription drugs by retail without prescriptions of registered medical practitioners. Various notices, advisories and letters have been issued to the state drugs controllers and other stakeholders for strict compliance with the requirements of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act and Rules. Responding to a question on whether the government is considering implementing any digital tools to track the sale of Schedule H drugs, Patel said presently, there is no such proposal under consideration regarding this. However, on November 17, 2022, the Drugs Rules, 1945 that came into force on August 1, 2023 were amended, providing that the manufacturers of the top 300 brands of drug-formulation products, as specified in Schedule H2, shall print or affix a bar code or quick response code on its primary packaging label or, in case of inadequate space on the primary package label, on the secondary package label that stores data or information legible with software application to facilitate authentication, she said. PTI PLB RC view comments First Published: August 12, 2025, 17:15 IST Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Indian Express
05-08-2025
- Indian Express
Gujarat to prepare SOPs to stop duplicate, fake medicines from entering state
The Gujarat government, in a statement on Tuesday, said it is in the process of formulating Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) to enhance detection and seizures of duplicate and fake medicines from entering the state. 'Recently, it came to the notice of the state government that fake medicines are entering (Gujarat). They are being sourced from outside the state and sold in some places inside the state. Gujarat's Food and Drug Control Administration (FDCA) has also taken action by conducting on-site inspections. To make this more stringent and strict, the government will prepare an SOP for the inspection of medicines coming from outside the state into Gujarat,' Health Minister Rushikesh Patel was quoted as saying. The SOPs would make registration of imported medicines mandatory, require registration of transporters carrying medicines and cancellation of licenses of chemists or wholesalers who are caught in such dealing with fake medicines. The SOPs will also require people to strictly follow the Drugs and Cosmetics Act. Besides, expensive and 'fast-moving' medicines will be closely monitored. The state government will also start three new testing labs in addition to the existing NABL-certified laboratory in Vadodara. To intensify on-site testing, 10 sets of state-of-the-art hand-held devices (Raman Spectrometer with Advanced Technology) will be purchased. Further, a flying squad will be formed. Patel added that with the implementation of these SOPs, Gujarat will become the first state in the country to adopt 'zero-tolerance' towards duplicate and fake medicines. 'The government will take intensive action to prevent fake/spurious/counterfeit medicines from outside the state in Gujarat. In the last 4 years, raids were conducted to prevent counterfeit medicines/cosmetics in the state and more than Rs 6 crore (worth of) medicines/cosmetics were seized…about 75 persons/firms were found involved and action was taken against them,' a statement read. Speaking about the type of activities unearthed so far, the statement said, 'In most of these cases, persons who do not have a valid license for buying, selling and storing medicines are involved and investigation has also revealed that in most of the cases, counterfeit medicines come from outside the state.'
