Rs 50 lakh Penalty, 5 Year Prison For Promoting, Endorsing Fairness Creams: Govt Proposes New Rules

Promoters and actors who endorse and advertise fairness creams are in big trouble. Soon, they will be asked to pay a penalty of Rs 50 lakh, and serve prison time upto 5 years.

Govt has suggested sweeping changes to the laws regarding such advertisements, and this is indeed great news.

Rs 50 Lakh Penalty, 5 Years Prison For Fairness Cream Ads

Govt. of India has decided to make some massive amendments to the Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act, 1954 and now, fairness cream ads will be part of the new laws.

As per the proposals drafted for the amendments, any party found promoting and advertising fairness cream ads will be slapped with penalty and jail term.

These new rules would be drafted under Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) (Amendment) Bill, 2020.

As per the suggestions, penalty of Rs 10 lakh and jail term upt0 2 years have been proposed for first offense and then repeated offenses can invite penalty upto Rs 50 lakh and jail term upto 5 years.

Under the current laws, jail term for 6 months exists for the first time offense, and upto 1 year for 2nd time and beyond. 

But such are the weak links of the law, that no one ever gets punished, despite hundreds of such ads broadcasting daily across various media platforms.

What Will Change In The Laws?

As per Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, these amendments has been proposed “in order to keep pace with changing time and technology.”

As per the new laws, any ‘magic remedy’ is the form of a talisman, mantra, kavacha which promises diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment or prevention of any disease in humans or animals.

And promoting such magic remedies, will now also include fairness creams, would be punishable by law.

Why This Was Needed?

Brands are playing with the insecurities of dark-complexioned people, and offering them a ‘magical’ solution by means of fairness cream.

In fact, brands like Patanjali describes dark skin as a form of skin ailment, and their advertisements use this for selling more creams.

Although advertisement agencies have been cracking whips against companies such as Fair and Lovely, Emami and others for the same reason, there has been no concrete action till now,

Hopefully, the new rules regarding such advertisements will now change the narrative.