FDA likely to implement informers’ system

The Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) is understood to have decided to bring many changes in its working and might implement informers’ system to easily get information of the adulterators or adulterated food items in the State. Recently, it is going to have Global Positioning System (GPS) attached SIMs to its food safety officers so that they can be tracked where they surveyed or from where they took samples of the adulteration suspected food items’ samples for testing.

According to sources, there is a provision of keeping informers like in police or Forest Department where the department has their paid informers they supply information about criminals and poachers or wood thieves to the concerning officers in order to control illegal activities in both the departments.

Such informers’ system provision is in Government of India’s Foods Safety Act but the State Government is to make law according to which so that there will be some budgetary provision to pay some amount to the informers giving information about the adulterated food items or adulterators.

However, the Food Safety Officers have informers but they are unpaid and so they are not officially on the job.

They are the reason these officers are able to reach to the place where adulterated food items are sold or to whom who are indulged in it.

About some months when the Food Safety Officers had raided a few traders of mava, sweets and milk dairies and the raids were conducted on the factories where the adulterated milk, mava and panner was being made. It might be possible with help of informers.

It is learnt that the senior officers of Foods and Drugs Administration (FDA) are deliberating over implementing informers’ system in state and it might be started in coming months. It will give more relief to the Food Safety Officers.

When contacted, Pramod Shukla, Joint Controller, Foods and Drugs Control, said initially the GPS attached SIM system will be in FDA officers going to field to check the adulteration in foods. There is a provision of informers’ system in Food Safety Act, we will deliberate over implementing it. We will have to keep some budget provision of it, he said.