143 firms guilty of false claims: Ad watchdog

The complaints were in diverse segments dealing with consumer goods or products such as healthcare, food and beverages and eight other categories. 

“Maximum complaints were against 102 firms in the healthcare sector for their misleading or false advertisements followed by 20 in education, 7 in personal care, 6 in food and beverages and eight in other sectors,” says the statement. Among the firms whose ads were in contravention to the Drug & Magic Remedies Act and the Council’s code were Proyurveda Lifescience Ltd, Nurture Health Care (Medora Capsules), Qi Lifecare Ltd and Shree Maruti Herbal for capsules, oils and gel. 

“For instance, Proyurveda’s ad claimed that its capsules or gel helped in protecting joint cartilage by reducing regeneration and in treating the root cause of joint pain,” it said. Similarly, Nurture Health Care’s ad (in Marathi) claimed its Medora capsules “would deliver weight reduction without lifestyle changes” was not substantiated with evidence of product efficacy, and is misleading. 

Likewise, claims by 20 educational firms, including Vidyamandir Classes and Cadd Centre India, were not substantiated. “Cash reward worth 2 crore” by Vidyamandir was not substantiated with evidence of students receiving the amount. While ‘First time in India! 1,000 jobs in 100 days for Cadd Quest participants and job guarantee for 1,000 students were not substantiated with verifiable data,” it said. 

Nivea India and Hindustan Unilever (HUL) were pulled up for misleading with ambiguity in their print and visual ads. HUL’s Rin Antibac ad claiming to have “Ayurvedic extracts to remove germs” was misleading by implication and exaggeration as it does not have the property to provide germ protection in wear conditions.