Tuesday, Oct 26, 2004
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Advts: Classifieds | Employment | Obituary | New Delhi
By Bindu Shajan Perappadan
NEW DELHI, OCT. 25. The Indian Medical Association (IMA) is seeing red as the Delhi Drugs Controller has neither responded to its appeal nor taken any initiative to take off the air what it claims illegal promotion of the drug Diclowin Plus - "Hari Panni Wali Goli" -- on leading television channels. According to IMA officials, the "Hari Panni Wali Goli'' advertisement campaign positions its drug Diclowin Plus as an effective medicine for pain relief and advises people to take it for body pain, headache and for other aches and pains. Worried about this misinformation and the negative impact it will have on the health of users, IMA had written to the Delhi State Drug Controller, drawing attention to the fact that the consumer was being flooded with information that could prove harmful. Noting that it was a serious issue that requires urgent attention, IMA claims that it is yet to receive any information on what the Government plans to do in this respect. Speaking about the issue, the IMA Secretary-General, (Delhi), Vinay Aggarwal, claimed that they were prepared for a long haul in case that is what it would take to get the advertisement off the air. "We are sure that the Drugs Controller understands that the drug is `harmful' and that it is completely illegal to promote and even encourage people to buy it without doctor's prescription. And despite the seriousness of the issue we are surprised that we haven't got any information from the Controller. But we are hopeful that advertisements of this kind will not be allowed. We are prepared for a long stiff fight. We insist that the public should get the right information about drugs,'' explained Dr. Aggarwal. Raising questions about the use of the drug Diclowin Plus as an effective painkiller, the IMA official claimed that Diclofenac Sodium falls under the Schedule `H' Drug and Cosmetic Rules, 1945, that carry a warning that the drug is to be "sold by retail on the prescription of a registered medical practitioner only''. The advertisement, however, according to Dr. Aggarwal, encourages the sale, purchase of this drug for common aches and pains, falsely lulling the populace of its safety and encourages its use by all `customers' as this exposes them to possible serious side-effects like gastritis, blood disorders, malfunctioning of the kidney and liver and sometimes even headache. "We at the IMA are deeply concerned about this illegal methodology adopted for promoting a Schedule `H' Drug. We urge the Controller to take immediate regulatory action to stop this advertisement campaign and impose sanctions to prevent similar advertisements by drug companies in future,'' said Dr. Aggarwal.
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