Medical Jurisprudence And Toxicology

POISONS AND THEIR MEDICO-LEGAL ASPECTS 425

Under this Act, the Central Government has constituted the Drugs
Technical Advisory Board, the Drugs Consultative Committee and the
Central Drugs Laboratory. The duties of the Drugs Technical Advisory
Board are to advise the Central Government and the State Governments on
technical matters arising out of the administration of this Act. The duties
of the Drugs Consultative Committee, which is an Advisory Committee, is
composed of two representatives of the Central Government and one
representative of each State Government is to advise the Central Govern-
ment, the State Governments and the Drugs Technical Advisory Board on
matters tending to secure uniformity throughout India in the administration
of this Act. The duty of the Central Drugs Laboratory is to analyse or test
samples of drugs imported into India and picked up by the Officers at the
Ports. The Central Drugs Laboratory also acts as the final authority
in case of disputes over the results of analysis about which a prose-
cution is pending in a Court of Law. The most important provision of
this Act is1 that no person shall import, or manufacture for sale, or sell, or
stock or exhibit for sale, or distribute any patent or proprietary medicine
unless there is displayed on its label or container either the true formula or
a list of ingredients contained in it in a manner readily intelligible to mem-
bers of the Medical Profession. The Act also empowers the Central
Government to specify the diseases or ailments which an imported drug
may not claim to cure or mitigate, to prescribe conditions of packing bottles,
packages or other containers of imported drugs and to prescribe the maxi-
mum proportion of any poisonous substance contained in any imported drug.

When taking a sample of a drug for analysis, an inspector is required to
pay the fair price thereof and to divide the sample into four portions, which
he will dispose of as follows : —

(i) one portion he will restore to the vendor;

(ii) the second portion he will send to the Government Analyst for test
or analysis ;

(iii) the third he will retain for production in Court, when required;

(iv) the fourth he will send to the warrantor, if any, who will then have
the opportunity of ascertaining if in fact he supplied the drug or if
it has undergone any change since he supplied it.

Offences punishable under this Act can be tried only by a Presidency
Magistrate or by a Magistrate of the first class.

The Drugs Rules, 1945, under the Drugs Act, 1940, have been made by
the Central Government to regulate the import of drugs into India, the func-
tions and procedure of the Central Drugs Laboratory and manufacture,
distribution and sale in India.

Prior to the Drugs (Amendment) Act, 1955, the State Governments had
their own Drugs Rules regulating the manufacture, distribution and sale in
their respective States, but they were exactly similar to those in the central
areas. Now the Central Government has taken over the power of making
rules and only Central Rules are applicable throughout India. At present,
however, the Drugs Rules are not enforced in some Part B States.

The Rules are divided into twelve Parts. Of these Part IV deals with
import of drugs and Parts VI and VII deal with sale and manufacture of
drugs respectively. Prior to the Amendment Act of 1955, there was a pro-
vision in Part III of the Rules to register the formula of patent and
proprietary medicine with the Director of the Central Drugs Laboratory,
This provision has now been removed with a view to abolishing the
undesirable practice of selling medicines under undisclosed formulae.