NEW DELHI: 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 license 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.
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).
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 license.
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.
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 license.
Asserting that the raids revealed the extent of illegal cosmetics in the market, Reddy also cautioned against purchase of such products. PTI
