Food safety tribunals

Is the State Government really interested in making the two Food Safety Tribunals one in Srinagar and the other in Jammu really functional? We have doubts. The High Court that had decreed their establishment through an earlier order, too, has doubts. That is why it has directed the Commissioner/ Secretary Health and Medical Education (H&ME) to file a personal affidavit after it was informed that despite assuming charge by presiding officers of these tribunals, the tribunals are in shambles and no basic facility is available to them. Even the tribunals are not provided suitable accommodation, leave aside the infrastructural facilities. Though adequate manpower is sanctioned for each tribunal, yet the same has not been provided.

Why does the Government take the Tribunals so non-seriously? It is a matter of public health as it is threatened by adulterated food. There can be no more severe an indictment by the court which has said that the claim of the Government that infrastructure has been provided is only on paper and not on ground. The Tribunals were ordered by the High Court out of its wisdom when it took serious note of food adulteration and its very adverse effects on human health. Moreover, seizure of adulterated food stuff and its destruction was not the wholesome treatment of the menace of food adulteration. The Tribunals have been empowered to adjudicate on the safety of foodstuff provided for public consumption. It is so sad that the Government is not taking the public health seriously and is sunning its responsibility of seeing to it that public health is not threatened. The Tribunals should be provided with all the sanctioned manpower and other facilities that enable them to become functional.