Apr 26, 2012

Food Safety Act: Traders to propose amendments

Traders under the aegis of MP Food Manufacturers and Sellers Federation are planning to propose amendments in Food Safety and Standards Act. The proposal would be sent to Food Safety and Standards Authority of India and Members of Parliament. “Whatever is decided for traders should be in accordance with the Indian tradition and culture. Legal provisions imported from other countries should not be imposed on the traders,” said president, MP Food Manufacturers and Sellers Federation Ramesh Khandelwal.

“Even though the act is there, there is no necessary infrastructure to enforce its implementation. For example, under the act, it is mandatory to send food samples to a laboratory of international standard, but the same is yet to be set up in the state,” claimed Khandelwal. The traders have demanded scrapping of the clauses that require having a technician with  B Sc degree for food manufacturing units and financial audit of these establishments. The traders also want the magnitude of penal provision to be lessened. Khandelwal said that while stringent punishment should be there for traders involved in adulteration, the existing provisions would only hassle honest businessmen.

The federation will also prepare a CD of these suggestions and the same would be sent to Food Safety and Standards Authority of India and Members of Parliament within a week. The traders are also seeking legal advice on these demands after studying various provisions of the act.

No comments:

Post a Comment