The findings come as the Centre has proposed mandatory CCTV surveillance at medical stores selling prescription drugs, and the Maharashtra FDA has intensified enforcement against retailers. As many as 71% of consumers surveyed in Mumbai said chemists never or rarely refused to sell medicines without a doctor’s prescription, compared with 64% nationally, according to a LocalCircles survey published on September 18, 2026.
The gap was also visible in home deliveries. The proposed rule comes amid a sharper enforcement drive by the Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration. Of 3,122 respondents, 18% said their chemist never demanded a doctor’s prescription during ordering or delivery and 40% said this happened very rarely. Only 23% said a prescription was sought most of the time or always. The national survey, published a day earlier on September 17, 2026, showed similar, though somewhat lower, levels of reported non-compliance. Across India, 64% of consumers surveyed said their chemist never or rarely insisted on a doctor’s prescription, while only 15% said chemists did so most of the time or always. Only 31% said they were assisted by a qualified pharmacist most of the time or always, while 13% said the person assisting them was not qualified. Between June and August 2026, the FDA inspected 2,902 drug establishments, including 2,295 sales establishments and 607 manufacturing units, and initiated action against 880 licensees.
