A paediatrician in Hyderabad, Dr Sivaranjani Santosh, discovered that sugary drinks marketed as “ORS” (Oral Rehydration Solution) were harming children with dehydration. After years of advocacy, regulation has changed a movement of doctors, parents and regulators that has reshaped policy and protection for child health.
Glimpse:
Over eight years, Dr Santosh documented cases where children worsened despite being given drinks labeled “ORS” that didn’t meet WHO standards. She filed a PIL, mobilised paediatric societies, and pressed the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) to ban misuse of the “ORS” label. In October 2025, FSSAI issued a directive banning non-medicinal beverages from using “ORS” in their branding.
Dr Sivaranjani Santosh, a Hyderabad-based paediatrician, began noticing over a decade ago that children with diarrhoea and vomiting were not improving despite being given tetra-pack drinks labelled as “ORS”. These drinks often contained excessive sugar and inadequate electrolytes, thereby worsening dehydration instead of treating it.
She launched a campaign that spanned social media awareness, hospital case-reporting, letters to regulators, and ultimately a Public Interest Litigation before the Telangana High Court. She challenged manufacturers of such drinks and regulatory inaction.
At last, on 14 October 2025, the FSSAI issued a clear directive: no food or beverage shall use the word “ORS” in its product name, whether as a standalone or with a prefix or suffix, unless it meets the WHO-recommended ORS formula and is regulated as a medicinal product.
Dr Santosh credits not just her efforts but that of “parents, doctors, journalists and health advocates” who bolstered the movement. She emphasises that this is not her win alone it is a win for child health.
The consequences are significant: the ban helps protect children from being mis-led into using sugary drinks that masquerade as life-saving solutions. It reaffirms that ORS remains a medical intervention, not a marketing gimmick. Dr Santosh continues to call for stronger awareness campaigns, and for genuine ORS sachets to be made widely available in hospitals, pharmacies and schools.
“When a mother walks into a pharmacy asking for ORS, she deserves the real thing. Not a product that could harm her child. That’s why I fought and that’s why we won.”
By
HB Team
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