<div dir="ltr"><p>The Centre released on Friday detailed guidelines to prohibit companies from making false claims about health and nutritional benefits of their products to persuade children into buying them. According to the government, the move was also made to stop the children from buying goods and services that offer promotional gifts as persuasion material or could encourage developing negative body image in children.</p><p>To prevent airing or publishing of any misleading advertisements targeting children, the Ministry of Consumer Affairs said that the new norms came into effect on Friday. The guidelines will be applicable to advertisements published on all platforms such as print, television and online.</p><p>“If anybody violates the guidelines, action will be taken as per the Central Consumer Protection Act,” consumer affairs ministry secretary Rohit Kumar Singh said.</p><p>Under the Prevention of Misleading Advertisements and Necessary Due Diligence for Endorsement of Advertisement Guidelines, 2022, the consumer affairs ministry has provided 19 provisions pertaining only to advertisements targeting children.</p><p>“If any advertisement claims any health or nutritional claims or benefits without being adequately and scientifically substantiated by a recognised body, (it) will be considered as misleading," Singh said.</p><p>He said that advertisements should not be “such as to develop negative body image in children or give any impression that such goods, product or service is better than the natural or traditional food which children may be consuming.”</p><p>Advertisements targeting children should not claim that consuming the advertised product will influence intelligence or physical ability, or bring exceptional recognition without any valid substantiation or adequate scientific evidence.</p><p>Any advertisement that offered promotional gifts to persuade children to buy goods, products or services without necessity or promoted illogical consumerism should be discouraged, he said.</p><p>Any advertisement that exploited children’s susceptibility to charitable appeals should explain the extent to which their participation will help in any charity-linked promotions, he said</p></div>
<div dir="ltr"><p>The Centre released on Friday detailed guidelines to prohibit companies from making false claims about health and nutritional benefits of their products to persuade children into buying them. According to the government, the move was also made to stop the children from buying goods and services that offer promotional gifts as persuasion material or could encourage developing negative body image in children.</p><p>To prevent airing or publishing of any misleading advertisements targeting children, the Ministry of Consumer Affairs said that the new norms came into effect on Friday. The guidelines will be applicable to advertisements published on all platforms such as print, television and online.</p><p>“If anybody violates the guidelines, action will be taken as per the Central Consumer Protection Act,” consumer affairs ministry secretary Rohit Kumar Singh said.</p><p>Under the Prevention of Misleading Advertisements and Necessary Due Diligence for Endorsement of Advertisement Guidelines, 2022, the consumer affairs ministry has provided 19 provisions pertaining only to advertisements targeting children.</p><p>“If any advertisement claims any health or nutritional claims or benefits without being adequately and scientifically substantiated by a recognised body, (it) will be considered as misleading," Singh said.</p><p>He said that advertisements should not be “such as to develop negative body image in children or give any impression that such goods, product or service is better than the natural or traditional food which children may be consuming.”</p><p>Advertisements targeting children should not claim that consuming the advertised product will influence intelligence or physical ability, or bring exceptional recognition without any valid substantiation or adequate scientific evidence.</p><p>Any advertisement that offered promotional gifts to persuade children to buy goods, products or services without necessity or promoted illogical consumerism should be discouraged, he said.</p><p>Any advertisement that exploited children’s susceptibility to charitable appeals should explain the extent to which their participation will help in any charity-linked promotions, he said</p></div>
