Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable
Advertisements) Rules, 1955
[26th
February, 1955]
In exercise of the powers
conferred by Section 16 of the Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable
Advertisements) Act, 1954 (21 of 1954), the Central Government hereby makes the
following Rules, namely:—
Rule - 1. Short title and commencement.
(1) These rules may be called
the Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Rules, 1955.
(2) They shall come into force
on such date[1] as
the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint.
Rule - 2. Definitions.
In these rules, unless the
context otherwise requires,—
(1) the “Act” means the Drugs
and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act, 1954 (21 of 1954); and
(2) “section” means a section
of the Act.
[2][* * *]
Rule - 3. Scrutiny of misleading advertisements relating to drugs.
[3][Any person authorised by
the State Government in this behalf may, if satisfied, that an advertisement
relating to a drug contravenes the provisions of Section 4], by order, require
the manufacturer, packer, distributor or seller of the drug to furnish, within
such time as may be specified in the order or such further time as may be
allowed in this behalf by the person so authorised information regarding the
composition of the drug or the ingredients thereof or any other information in
regard to that drug as he deems necessary for holding the scrutiny of the
advertisement, and where any such order is made, it shall be the duty of the
manufacturer, packer, distributor or seller of the drug to which the
advertisement relates to comply with the order. Any failure to comply with such
order shall, for the purposes of Section 7, be deemed to be a contravention of
the provisions of Section 4:
Provided that no publisher
or advertising agency of any medium for the dissemination of an advertisement relating
to a drug shall be deemed to have made any such contravention merely by reason
of the dissemination by him or it of any such advertisement, unless such
publisher or advertising agency has failed to comply with any direction made by
the authorised person in this behalf calling upon him or it to furnish the name
and address of the manufacturer, packer distributor, seller or advertising
agency, as the case may be, who or which caused such advertisement to be
disseminated.
Rule - 4. Procedure to be followed in prohibiting import into, and export from, India of certain advertisements.
(1) if the Customs Collector
has reasons to believe that any consignment contains documents of the nature
referred to in Section 6, he may, and if requested by an officer appointed for
the purposes by the Central Government, shall detain the consignment and
dispose it of in accordance with the provisions of the Sea Customs Act, 1878
(VIII of 1878), and the rules made thereunder, and shall also inform the
importer or exporter of the order so passed:
Provided that if the
importer or exporter feels aggrieved by an order passed by the Customs
Collector under this sub-rule and makes a representation to him within one week
of the date of receipt of the order and gives an undertaking in writing not to
dispose of the consignment without the consent of the Customs Collector and to
return the consignment when so required to do by the Customs Collector, the
Customs Collector shall pass an order making over the consignment to the
importer or exporter, as the case may be:
Provided further that
before passing any order under this sub-rule or under the first proviso
thereof, the Customs Collector shall consult the officer appointed for the
purpose by the Central Government.
(2) If the importer or exporter
who has given an undertaking under the first proviso to sub-rule (1) is
required by the Customs Collector to return the consignment or any portion
thereof, he shall return the consignment or portion thereof within ten days of
the receipt of the notice.
Rule - 5. [Manner in which advertisements may be sent confidentially.
All documents containing
advertisements relating to drugs referred to in Clause (c) of sub-section (1)
of Section 14, shall be sent by post to a registered medical practitioner by
name, or to a wholesale or retail chemist, the address of such registered medical
practitioner or wholesaler or retail chemist being given. Such document shall
be at the top, printed in indelible ink in a conspicuous manner, the words “For
the use only of registered medical practitioners or a hospital or a
laboratory”.][4]
Rule - 6. Prohibition of advertisement of drugs for treatment of disease, etc.
No person shall also take
part in the publication of any advertisement referring to any drug in terms
which suggest or are calculated to lead to the use of that drug for the
diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment or prevention of any disease, disorder
or condition specified in the Schedule annexed to these rules.][5]
[6][THE SCHEDULE
[See Rule
6]
(1) Asthma
(2) AIDS.]
[1] April 1,
1995 vide S.R.O. 512, dt. 26-2-1955.
[2] Rule
3 omitted and Rules 4 to 7 re-numbered as Rules 3 to 6 by
S.O. 1688, dt. 22-5-1962.
[3] Subs. by S.O. 826, dt.
10-4-1961.
[4] Subs. by S.O. 348, dt.
20-1-1962.
[5] Subs. by GSR 442(E), dt.
1-6-1982.
[6] Subs. by G.S.R. 447(E),
dt. 25-6-2002 (w.e.f. 25-6-2002).