CDSCO warns against indiscriminate use of NSAIDs and antibiotics
On 21 September 2026, the Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO) issued a circular addressing concerns over the indiscriminate use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and antibiotics. The advisory links such misuse to chronic kidney disease risk and reiterates statutory requirements under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940.
CDSCO mandated that prescription drugs, including NSAIDs and antibiotics, must be sold only on prescription from a Registered Medical Practitioner. Most such medicines fall under Schedules G, H, H1 and X of the Drugs Rules, 1945, requiring medical supervision and compliance with prescribed warnings.
The circular issued stakeholder-specific guidance: the general public should avoid self-medication, not use antibiotics for viral infections, and seek medical advice before using NSAIDs if they have kidney-related risk factors. Healthcare professionals were directed to prescribe only when clinically indicated and use the lowest effective doses for the shortest duration.
