Corporate Citizen Claps for the indian army for setting up new guidelines that will henceforth govern all advertisements that base patriotism in the garb of actors as soldiers or use the army uniform to tout their wares

These guidelines will govern all commercials meant for public consumption via television, social media and banners. In the interest of upholding positive ethos that defines the ‘Indian Army’, the organisation has strictly noted that ‘no pan masala or fairness cream advertisement should depict soldiers in it.’ The Indian Army in its new guideline has issued special restrictions directing advertisers who ideate or show actors in uniform. Henceforth, all advertisements depicting soldiers need clearance before releasing it to the public. This means that advertisers will now have to take prior approval from the Ministry of Defence before it can release commercials that endorse the Army or soldiers for products or services in the public domain, including social media, digital marketing and promotions. This measure has got the nod of the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) , a self-regulatory organisation that has tweeted, “#ASCIAdGuide Caution for Advertisers and advertising agencies while creating ads depicting army personnel. Seek guidance from @adgpi #ASCIinNEWS #celebrity #endorsement #panmasala #fairnesscream.’’ ASCI works closely with the Department of Consumer Affairs, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India, the Ministry of AYUSH as well as the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB). “Military fatigues are not mere uniforms. They are a symbol of national pride. There needs to be clear guidelines of do’s and don’ts on this issue,” said Harish Bijoor, the acclaimed brand expert and Image consultant. This measure will hopefully curb the mindless use of actors as soldiers that paint and sell ‘patriotic flavour’ in a bid to sell goods and services. Patriotism definitely needed this ‘Azadi’ from such ‘artificial’ false capers and this ‘Josh’ is well worth it! Better late than never.

Corporate Citizen Slaps the mindset that continues to herald ‘casteism’ and other prejudiced notions for job reservations

In a recent development, Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) came under the scanner which embarrassed the Railway Ministry when the private IRCTC contractor released an advertisement in a prominent English daily that laid preference for men from specific communities-in this case ‘Agarwal’ and ‘Vaish’-calling for only those with a good family background, needed to apply. The advertisement published on November 6, 2019, called to recruit some 100 men for various managerial positions across departments such as train related catering, the railway food plaza, base kitchen and store managers. The Okhlabased Brandavan Food Products (R K Meals), caters to at least 100 trains under the railway ministry. The advert has enraged netizens and also mobilised the Indian Railways to take remedial action against such biased approach. The Indian Railways said that the HR manager concerned has been removed by the contractor and that “The particular contractor has been asked to refrain from giving such advertisements that discriminate on caste, creed and religious grounds.” One tweet gave it a political colour blaming politicians for promoting casteism that is now getting ingrained in every sphere of life, albeit for generating vote banks. Reeling under the flak, R K Meals, had to issue a statement that read: “We’re supposed to place two advertisements-one for the recruitment of staff on trains, another one for the recruitment of staff for our social welfare function. Due to some clerical mistake, this advertisement has been placed publicly. We did not realise what had happened until we received so many calls regarding the same.” While the caterer did apologise saying that they meant no harm to anyone nor intended to offer the job to any specific community only time will justify this whitewashed claim!