The government has asked media outlets ‘not to publish advertisements of any products, drug items, services, housing plots and flats which were declared illegal’ to ‘protect people from being cheated’ although it does not have a full list of companies engaged in such unlawful businesses.
The information ministry in a recent order to the authorities concerned also asked for action against such companies wooing people to their unapproved products through impressive advertisements, especially in heath services and real estate development, a senior official said.
The order came apparently in compliance with a High Court order that directed end to earth-filling, sales of plots and advertisements of all such unauthorised projects in the real estate sector.
‘We have sought cooperation of the media to save the people of from being cheated throguh attractive advertisements of unapproved products, particularly drugs, health services and food items affecting consumers,’ the information minister, Hasanul Haq Inu, told New Age on Monday.
He said that newspapers, news agencies and television channels should be aware of government policies in important areas such as food and health services.
‘The media should be sensitive to the contents of advertisements and ensure that they maintain government policies and regulations concerned,’ the minister added.
He said that the media should also check whether the products had approval of the regulatory authorities before the publication of their advertisements.
The Press Information Department in an official handout on Sunday said that ‘it had noticed recently that the electronic and the print media were advertising sales of illegal and unapproved products, drugs, services, plots and flats and were putting people at the risk of being cheated.’
It also requested the electronic and print media not to publish advertisements of such products.
The information ministry, however, did not have any list of companies cheating people by way advertising products having no approval of authorities, a senior official said.
Officials in different authorities also said that they did not have any list of all companies selling unapproved or illegal products
and advertising them in newspapers and on television channels.
‘We always take action against real estate companies selling unapproved plots or flats whenever it comes to our notice. But it is true that there are thousands of illegal projects and all of them could not be monitored,’ Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha member (planning) Sheikh Abdul Mannan told New Age.
He said that the city development authorities had warned many entities and also filed cases against some real estate developers for advertising unapproved projects in recent times.
It has been reported that Rajuk turns a blind eye to trading in illegal projects allegedly rampant in and around the capital city.
The High Court order of December, 2011 banned advertisements of any unauthorised housing projects in print and on electronic media and ordered the government to take stern action against the publicity, land-filling and any activity of such projects.