New Delhi, July 21 (IANS). The Government has taken several important steps to ensure the quality of AYUSH medicines and strengthen regulatory compliance. These also include new provisions related to monitoring and control of AYUSH medicines sold on e-commerce platforms.
Minister of State for AYUSH Prataprao Jadhav told the Rajya Sabha that there are special regulatory provisions for Ayurveda, Siddha, Sowa-Rigpa, Unani and Homeopathy medicines in the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 and Drugs Rules, 1945. Under these provisions, it is mandatory for manufacturers of medicines to comply with the prescribed licensing conditions before producing them for sale.
He informed that drug inspectors of states and union territories regularly collect samples of drugs from manufacturing units and retail outlets and send them to laboratories for quality testing.
If any sample does not meet the prescribed quality standards, legal action is taken against the concerned manufacturer or seller under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 and its associated rules.
A special AYUSH vertical has also been created in the Central Drugs Standard Control Organization to ensure the safety and quality of AYUSH medicines.
According to the statement, ‘AYUSH Standard’ and ‘AYUSH Premium’ certifications are awarded to AYUSH products after third party assessment under the quality certification scheme of the Quality Council of India.
The Ministry of AYUSH is also running a central sector scheme named ‘AYUSH Drug Quality and Production Promotion Scheme’. The objective of this scheme is to standardize medicines, quality based production, testing regime, strengthening the regulatory framework, enhancing safety monitoring and keeping an eye on misleading advertisements.
The Ministry has also launched ‘Ayush Suraksha Portal’ for real-time reporting and monitoring of misleading advertisements and potential side effects of medicines.
Further, All India Institute of Ayurveda has been designated the nodal agency for issuing notices to digital mediums and online platforms in cases of misleading advertisements related to AYUSH medicines.
The government has directed e-commerce platforms to allow the sale of AYUSH medicines only if the consumer uploads a valid prescription issued by a registered Ayurveda, Siddha or Unani practitioner, where required.
The Ministry also informed that all the Research Councils and National Institutes under it are disseminating evidence-based information related to AYUSH practices and products to the people through information, education and communication activities, publications, research journals, public awareness programs, electronic and print media and digital platforms.
–IANS
amt/vc
