Drug regulator issues notice to Amazon, Flipkart for alleged sale of spurious cosmetics
New Delhi, Oct 23: E-commerce giants -Amazon and Flipkart- have been issued notices by the country's drug regulator DCGI for allegedly selling "spurious and adulterated" cosmetics including imported brands, and have been warned of penal actions in case of failing to respond within 10 days.
The notice from the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) follows raids by drug inspectors at various locations across the country on October 5-6, during which they found that some indigenously manufactured cosmetics without valid manufacturing licence and having ingredients imported without necessary registration certificates were being sold on the e-commerce platforms.
The law provides for penal actions ranging from monetary fine to imprisonment for sale of such "unapproved" products.
When contacted, an Amazon India spokesperson told PTI the company takes strict action against sellers of "illegal or fake products" as and when such incidents are reported to it.
"Amazon.in is a third-party marketplace which enables sellers to list their products for sale to Indian customers. Sellers on Amazon.in own their respective products and are responsible for product compliances, as may be applicable.
"Amazon.in has a very high bar of customer experience and does take strict action against sellers who are selling illegal or fake products...in accordance with the due process of law, as and when such incidents are reported to us," the spokesperson said.
Among cosmetics being sold by these websites included imported brands without valid documents and containing ingredients in the "negative list" of the BIS (Bureau of Indian Standards).
Asking the companies to reply to its notice within 10 days, the DGCI has warned them of penal action for "offering for sale, sale and distribution of spurious, adulterated cosmetics and cosmetics manufactured without valid licence in contravention of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940."
"In case, you fail to submit the reply within the stipulated period, it will be presumed that you have no reply to offer and appropriate action as deemed fit will be initiated against you," DCGI S Eswara Reddy said in the notice.
Under the Drug and Cosmetics Act, it is mandatory to get a registration certificate for import of cosmetics into India, while all cosmetics manufactured in the country need to have a valid licence.
Besides, cosmetics need to conform to the standards laid down by the BIS and cannot have any ingredient mentioned in its negative list.
A similar notice was also issued to the Indiamart, another e-commerce website, Reddy said. Reactions from Flipkart and Indiamart were not immediately available.
Illegal cosmetics estimated to be worth Rs four crore were seized during pan-India raids carried out after which the central drug regulator lodged five FIRs across three cities -- Mumbai, Pune and Delhi -- against manufacturers who were making these cosmetics without licence.
Asserting that the raids revealed the extent of illegal cosmetics in the market, Reddy also cautioned against purchase of such products.
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PM Modi is controlled by Donald Trump, wants to do the same in TN: Rahul Gandhi
Ranipet (Tamil Nadu) (PTI): Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was being "controlled" by US President Donald Trump and that the PM wanted the AIADMK to capture power so that he could control Tamil Nadu Chief Minister.
Also, he claimed that the prime minister "handed out our energy security and gave away our data, besides selling our farmers and small and medium industries."
"You saw yesterday (in Parliament) the face of Prime Minister Narendra Modi completely lacking confidence," Rahul said on the delimitation bill.
"He (PM) could not even face the opposition. He was sitting sideways. And the reason is, he is controlled by the United States. He signed the India-US deal that sold our country out," Rahul said while addressing an election rally here.
He further said, "Today, if Donald Trump tells Modi to jump, Modi jumps. If Donald Trump tells Modi to lie down, Modi lies down. Why? Because Donald Trump controls Modi fully. How does he control him? He controls through the Epstein files. He controls him because he knows Modi's financial systems and understands Modi's link with Adani," the Congress leader alleged.
Just as he was being controlled by Trump, Modi wanted to do the same to the chief minister of Tamil Nadu. "That is why he wants to put AIADMK in power in TN," Rahul said.
The Union government had rejected references to PM Modi in the latest Jeffrey Epstein case files, describing it as “little more than trashy ruminations by a convicted criminal that deserves to be dismissed with the utmost contempt”.
