Government Operationalises Jan Vishwas Act Reforms in Health Sector; Rationalises Minor Offences under Drugs, Cosmetics and Food Safety Laws

📌 Summary:

• The Government operationalised reforms under the Jan Vishwas Act, 2026 relating to the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 and the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, to promote trust-based governance and ease of doing business while preserving public-health safeguards
• Minor and technical violations are being decriminalised and replaced with administrative penalties; serious offences risking public health and consumer safety remain fully penal
• Section 29 of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act (₹1 lakh penalty for misuse of a Government Analyst report in advertising) has been omitted; low-risk cosmetic and procedural violations (Section 28A: records, information) shifted to administrative penalties — but spurious/adulterated cosmetics still attract strict penalties
• Under the Food Safety and Standards Act: false complaints against Food Safety Officers shifted to administrative penalty; punishment for interfering with seized items cut from six to three months; the provision on obstructing a Food Safety Officer omitted as it is already covered under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (avoiding duplication)
• New Adjudicating Authorities and an Appeal Mechanism introduced for timely, transparent disposal of cases

🎯 UPSC Relevance: GS2 Governance — decriminalisation of minor offences, trust-based and proportionate regulation, ease of doing business, and reducing compliance burden without diluting safety

📝 Prelims Facts:

• Jan Vishwas Act, 2026 amends the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 and the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006
• Section 29 (D&C Act) omitted; Section 28A violations made administrative
• Penalty for interfering with seized food items reduced from 6 months to 3 months
• BNS = Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (replaced the IPC)

🔑 Key Term: Jan Vishwas Act — a legislative reform that decriminalises minor, technical and procedural offences across multiple laws, replacing imprisonment/criminal proceedings with administrative penalties to ease compliance.