Port Blair, Aug. 5: The Food Safety and Standards Act was passed in August 2006, and implemented from 5th August 2011, but the implementation of the Act is being effectively derailed by Health department. The Act promises safe and wholesome food for the consumer of this country.
There is vacuum in the State Food Authority and enforcement machinery, as they cannot exercise their powers from 5th August 2012 onwards.
Whether people have to file a Public Interest litigation to get them protected from unscrupulous Food Business People who are deceiving people by Food Adulteration and selling mis-branded food even after one year of the implementation of the Food Safety and Standards Act 2006?
Taking into consideration the serious food adulteration in whole of India, the central govt had enforced the act and rules with direction to establish State Food Authority from 5th August 2011.
Presently the Health Department is overloaded with multiple tasks and not able concentrate on patients, therefore the Food Safety Authority of India wanted every state to establish an independent setup. For almost 20 years no food is being tested for quality and people of A&N Islands are still to be protected from greedy people who do deliberate food adulteration and misbranding.
It is learnt that in 2010 an OSD food Safety was appointed for food Safety but this OSD has no expertise and knowledge on legal matter, which is complicated even to be understood by legal professionals.
The Food Safety and Standards Rules 2011 which came into force on 5th Augusts 2011; demands a Commissioner Food Safety who must not be below the Rank of Commissioner and Secretary to State Govt and no person can be appointed as Commissioner Food Safety who is below the Rank to Commissioner and Secretary to State Govt.
But before the rules were notified, the Administration appointed the Director Health Services as the Commissioner Food Safety as additional Charge. The appointment of the chief of the enforcement machinery appears to be wrong and is not in consistent with qualification rules. This has made all the notification and appointments made so far, of little value. In such case how can the Food Safety officer work?
The interpretation given is that pay of the DHS is above the Commissioner level and hence he is above the Rank of Commissioner and Secretary Health. There is also no whole time Designated Officer appointed, as per the Rules and no additional charge can be given after 4th August 2012; the non-appointment of designated officer as per the Rules will create an empty space in the enforcement machinery.
Under the Health department there is no Food Analyst and public analyst for the past 20 years, so one can guess why there is so much of adulteration in tea and other food items. There is no mechanism to check hence no adulteration in our Islands, then why so many food inspectors are appointed? We see many reports recent one the Hallbol of Aajtak news channel on food Adulteration. How can we expect safe food when we have no setup to test the food?
With the present status of the food authority the govt neither can take any action on food adulteration nor can bring any effective regulation banning Gutka or other products that may affect human health. Nothing more can be expected from the unqualified State Food Safety Authority that can be easily challenged by the offenders, while being prosecuted.
It is duty bound for the Government to establish State Food Authority and enforcement machinery, which will meet the requirements of Food Safety and Standards Rules 2011 that will stand unchallenged.
However the SDMs of the District can issue conditional order under CRPC 133 prohibiting Adulterated Tea and such beverages containing Tea along with added colour, being used as Tea in Tea Stalls by deceiving consumer. The police can take action under sec 272 of IPC on food adulteration.
The police and the Food Safety officials needs to be directed to Check the whole sellers and the Trucks carrying Food items for door to door selling in the rural areas of south Andaman and the rural areas of N&M Andaman districts, without any food licence for transporting food.
These trucks carry cheap and adulterated Tea and beverages, out dated food products, sell it to uneducated village vendors, ghuties from where peasants and daily wage earners drink Tea and buy essential commodities.
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