Sep 7, 2019
Munde: FDA chief annulled sugar mill suspension without authority
NCP leader also alleges violation of rules in Pallavi Darade’s appointment
Pallavi Darade, Commissioner of the State’s Food and Drug Administration (FDA), seems to have been caught in the political battle of supremacy between the Munde cousins, with one side accusing her of extending illegal favours to the other and seeking action under the Central Civil Services (Conduct) Rules, 1964.
Dhananjay Munde, Leader of Opposition in the State Council and a leader of the Nationalist Congress Party, had on August 14 sent a letter to the Chief Secretary and two other officials, accusing Ms. Darade of illegally annulling the suspension of licence to Vaidyanath Cooperative Sugar Mill in Beed district, which is headed by his cousin and Women and Child Welfare Minister Pankaja Munde.
In his letter, Mr. Munde also raised the issue of violation of eligibility criteria in appointing Ms. Darade as the commissioner despite her being from the Indian Revenue Service, while rules require an officer from the Indian Administrative Service (IAS).
Ms. Darade’s husband Pravin Darade, an IAS, was brought to Mumbai by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to work in the CM office. He is presently the additional municipal commissioner at the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC). The couple was in a controversy earlier over the allotment of a bungalow at Malbar Hill to them, which was opposed by the BMC.
Mr. Munde in his complaint letter mentioned the death of five workers at the sugar mill, and an inspection that followed the allegations of the mill not following rules under the Food Safety and Standards Act.
The letter said after the licence of the mill was suspended for 10 days on March 19, 2018, the management instead of appealing to the chief executive officer of the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), filed a complaint with the FDA Commissioner. “Pallavi Darade, despite having no jurisdiction and instead of directing the complaint to the FSSAI, annulled the order of suspending the licence of the mill on March 27, 2018,” the letter said. It said this was not only illegal but was also done with an intention to provide benefits to the sugar mill through wrong information.
On March 28, the letter said, Ms. Munde wrote to the CM seeking action against the officer who suspended the licence of the mill, and within a month, the officer, A.E. Kerure, was suspended with departmental inquiry pending against him. “She provided wrong information which violates law. The commissioner’s directions have illegally prevented action against the sugar mill. As a result, action should be taken against Ms. Darade under the Central Civil Services (Conduct) Rules, 1964,” the letter said.
According to sources in the FDA, no response has been sought yet from them by the Chief Secretary’s office. Ms. Darade could not be reached for a comment, and an SMS to her mobile number went unanswered till the time of writing this report.
Opinion | Hygiene ratings for eateries
The FSSAI will soon require restaurants and hotels to display hygiene ratings on their doors
Hygiene ratings for eateries
For those of us who love to dine out but are wary of the hygiene standards of the eateries we frequent, help may be at hand. The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) will soon require restaurants and hotels to display hygiene ratings on their doors, says a news report. There will also be food supervisors to check the safety of what is served, for which the regulator intends to train around 170,000 people. The FSSAI is in the process of forming guidelines to implement the rating system.
If implemented diligently, the programme would be in the interest of the customer and could raise the quality of food served. Ratings will give restaurant owners an incentive to improve their standards and will likely filter out food joints that pose a health risk. That extra costs borne to maintain quality may raise menu prices, too, is another matter. In general, few can object to such an idea.
However, any system that requires an external assessment of quality could be abused. As those in the hospitality business would testify, state-directed scrutiny tends to descend all too easily into an “inspector raj", with officials determined to give them a hard time, unless given some reason—pecuniary or otherwise—not to. As a way to guard against this, the criteria for hygiene ratings will need to be clear-cut and uniformly applicable, with no scope for subjectivity. A lot of well-intended initiatives end up hurting a market simply because their execution is faulty.
‘FSSAI should tighten screws on adulterated coconut oil in Kerala’
Expressing concern over the prevalence of “adulterated coconut oil” in the market, the Cochin Oil Merchants Association (COMA) has requested the food safety authorities to prevent manufacturers outside the State from using the name ‘Kera’ or ‘Kerala’ in such oils.
COMA alleged that these oils contain less than 25 per cent of coconut and is mainly used in the production of hair oil and body lotions. The consumers should be made aware of the fact that such oils could not be used for edible oil purpose, Thalath Mahmood, president, COMA, said.
The use of name ‘Kera’ or ‘Kerala’ in such oils should be banned and the authorities should carry out random checking of these products sold in the market, he said.
He added that the arrival of adulterated coconut oil from outside Kerala is on the rise and in many cases liquid paraffin and palm kernel oil are blended. Many of the brands and loose coconut oil coming from other States are not subjected to any scrutiny at the production centres.
The Association requested the Food Safety and Standard Authority of India (FSSAI) to take immediate steps to test and control the marketing and sale of adulterated coconut oil.
FSSAI submits guidelines on plastic ban to NGT
Various ministries are now actively working towards successful achievement of this goal
Food Safety and Standard Authority of India (FSSAI) will soon be coming out with a report on draft guidelines to achieve plastic ban in India that they have already submitted to NGT (National Green Tribunal).
Various ministries are now actively working towards successful achievement of this goal. The Union Minister of Consumer Affairs Food and Public Distribution, Ram Vilas Paswan recently announced a blanket ban on all types of single use plastic products in the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution and all its PSUs including Food Corporation of India (FCI).
The decision on this was taken in a high level meeting with Secretaries of both the Departments i.e. Consumer Affairs and Food, CMD FCI, DG Bureau of India Standards, MD of CWC, Director Legal Metrology along with other senior officials of the Ministry. It was decided that all single use plastic products will be completely banned in Ministry and its PSUs from 15th September.
Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan asked the officials to make alternate arrangements to ensure that the ban is effective.
ஹோட்டல் கதவு இப்படித்தான் இருக்கணுமாம்! உணவு ஆணையம் கெடுபிடி
உணவு தயாரிப்பில் ஒரே எண்ணெய்யை மீண்டும் மீண்டும் பயன்படுத்துவதைத் தடுக்கவும் உணவுப் பாதுகாப்பு மற்றும் தரப்படுத்தல் ஆணையம் நடவடிக்கை எடுத்துள்ளது.
ஹோட்டல் கதவு இப்படித்தான் இருக்கணுமாம்! உணவு ஆணையம் கெடுபிடி
ஹைலைட்ஸ்
- ஹோட்டல், ரெஸ்டாரெண்ட் கதவுகளில் தரக்குறியீடு இருக்க வேண்டும்.
- ஏற்கெனவே ஆன்லைன் உணவு விற்பனையில் இந்த விதி இருக்கிறது.
உணவகங்கள் நுழைவுவாயிலிலேயே தங்களுடைய தரக்குறியீட்டை காட்சிப்படுத்த வேண்டும் என்ற விதிமுறை விரைவில் அமலுக்கு வரக்கூடும்.
இந்திய உணவுப் பாதுகாப்பு மற்றும் தரப்படுத்தல் ஆணையம் இது குறித்து பரிசீலித்து வருகிறது. ரெஸ்டாரெண்டுகள், ஹோட்டல்கள் போன்றவற்றில் பாதுகாப்பான உணவு கிடைப்பதையும் உணவின தரம் சிறப்பாக இருப்பதையும் உறுதிசெய்ய இந்த விதிமுறையை நடைமுறைக்குக் கொண்டுவருவது பற்றி ஆலோசிக்கிறது.
ஏற்கெனவே ஆன்லைன் உணவு விற்பனையில் இந்த விதியை கட்டாயம் ஆக்கியிருக்கிறது. இதுவரை 1.7 லட்சம் உணவு பாதுகாப்பு கண்காணிப்பாளர்களுக்கு பயற்சி அளிக்கப்பட்டுள்ளது என இந்திய உணவுப் பாதுகாப்பு மற்றும் தரப்படுத்தல் ஆணையத்தின் தலைவர் பவன் அகர்வால் தெரிவிக்கிறார்.
நுழைவுவாயிலில் / வாசல் கதவில் தரக்குறியீட்டை காட்சிப்படுத்துவது தொடர்பான விதிகளை நிர்ணயம் செய்வது பற்றி ஆணையம் விவாதித்துக்கொண்டிருக்கிறது. அந்த விதிகள் அமலுக்கு வந்ததும் தொடர்ந்து சோதனைகள் மேற்கொள்ளப்பட்டு, விதியை மீறுபவர்களுக்கு நோட்டீஸ் அனுப்பப்படும்.
உணவு தயாரிப்பில் ஒரே எண்ணெய்யை மீண்டும் மீண்டும் பயன்படுத்துவதைத் தடுக்கவும் உணவுப் பாதுகாப்பு மற்றும் தரப்படுத்தல் ஆணையம் நடவடிக்கை எடுத்துள்ளது.
இதனிடையே, காலாவதித் தேதியைத் தாண்டியும் பொருட்களை சலுகை விலையில் விற்பதற்கு அனுமதிக்கலாம் எனவும் உணவுப் பாதுகாப்பு மற்றும் தரப்படுத்தல் ஆணையம் பரிசலிப்பது கவனிக்கத்தக்கது.
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