Demand to Recognise AYUSH Doctors Under Drug Advertising Law Reaches SC
A petition filed in the Supreme Court seeks revision of the Drugs and Magic Remedies Act, 1954, arguing it is outdated. The plea calls for an expert panel to update the law, recognise AYUSH doctors, and allow evidence-based, non-misleading medical information to reach the public.
There has been an important petition pending in the Supreme Court on the issue of the legislation governing advertising of drugs and medical products. The fact is that the legislation dating from 1954 has to be made more in line with the trends in science over the intervening period. This has reignited a debate on advertising drugs, the dissemination of information to the public, and the involvement of doctors in the AYUSH system.
The case has been filed in the Supreme Court. The petitioner, Nitin Upadhyay, has requested that an expert committee be constituted by the Central Government to assess the time schedule of the Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act, 1954. The case states that the Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act, 1954, was made at a time when the state of medical science was not as modern as it is today.
The petition also demands that AYUSH doctors be considered 'registered medical practitioners' under Section 2(cc) of the Act, which defines a registered doctor. The petitioner argues that excluding legitimate doctors associated with AYUSH and other non-allopathic systems from this definition is unfair.