Significantly, the 19 November order also reprimands some state food safety officers for mistakenly targeting WHO-recommended ORS.
Published Nov 20, 2025 | 3:26 PM ⚊ Updated Nov 20, 2025 | 3:26 PM
ORS and ORSL being simultaneously sold in Chennai pharmacies. (Veni EN)
Synopsis: The regulator stressed that the misuse of “ORS” — a formulation defined by the WHO for treating dehydration — misleads consumers into believing that sugary commercial beverages have the same therapeutic value.
Cracking down on continued misuse of the medically significant term “ORS,” the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) on Wednesday, 19 November issued a fresh nationwide order directing states and Union Territories to immediately remove all fruit-based beverages, energy drinks, electrolyte drinks and ready-to-serve beverages falsely branded with the term “ORS” from shops and online platforms.
The latest directive, issued by FSSAI official Dr Satyen Kumar Panda on Wednesday, comes after the regulator found that several companies were still selling drinks labelled as “ORS” despite FSSAI’s categorical ban issued on 14 and 15 October, withdrawing all permissions for using the term, even with prefixes or suffixes.
According to the order, misleading beverages continue to be sold across e-commerce marketplaces, grocery stores, pharmacies, supermarkets and modern retail, in clear violation of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006.
States have now been told to:
The regulator stressed that the misuse of “ORS” — a formulation defined by the WHO for treating dehydration — misleads consumers into believing that sugary commercial beverages have the same therapeutic value.
Significantly, the 19 November order also reprimands some state food safety officers for mistakenly targeting WHO-recommended ORS, which is classified as a drug under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940.
FSSAI clarified that its ban does not apply to legitimate ORS drug products and that field officers must not seize, sample or interfere with their sale or distribution.
“Enforcement activities shall remain strictly confined to non-compliant food products presented or labelled as ‘ORS’,” the regulator said, warning officers to exercise “due diligence.”
The 19 November order follows weeks of legal battles triggered by the ban.
On 31 October, the Delhi High Court refused to dilute FSSAI’s stand, calling misleading ORS-labelled drinks a “health hazard.”
Justice Sachin Datta had categorically declined to grant relief to companies such as Dr Reddy’s Laboratories, which sought permission to sell existing stock of its electrolyte drink branded with “VITORS.”
“This embargo will continue… Public health considerations are paramount,” the court said.
The High Court also clarified that its earlier 17 October consent order in another case involving ORSL manufacturer JNTL Consumer Health was misinterpreted by several companies as a licence to continue making ORS-labelled drinks. Justice Datta later stated that he would have restrained manufacturing immediately had he anticipated such misuse.
Behind the sweeping regulatory action lies an unusual eight-year grassroots campaign led by Dr Sivaranjani Santosh, a Hyderabad-based pediatrician, first-aid trainer and social activist.
Since 2017, Dr Sivaranjani has been petitioning regulators and the medical community against the use of “ORS” in sugary commercial drinks, arguing that such products mislead parents and endanger children during dehydration episodes.
She has repeatedly warned that beverages marketed as ORS-like solutions contain high sugar and do not match the WHO’s precise, life-saving formulation.
Her sustained advocacy — which she says has also attracted online threats and legal pressure from companies — played a key role in mobilising medical associations and bringing the issue before regulators and courts.
“This is not about brands or business. This is about protecting lives,” she said in recent public statements.
The ban affects a wide range of beverage and pharmaceutical manufacturers who have long marketed hydration drinks using medical-sounding ORS nomenclature.
Companies such as JNTL, which manufactures ORSL, and Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories, which sells Rebalanz VITORS, have already reported large inventories stuck due to the ban.
Some manufacturers have told the court that they are ready to rebrand, but sought time to clear existing stock — a request the Delhi High Court has firmly declined.
(Edited by Sumavarsha)
