The country’s top food regulator, Food Safety and Standard Authority (FSSAI) seems to be in no hurry to finalise the draft of the whistleblower scheme aimed to reward informants exposing food adulteration. This despite, its surveys reporting that contamination of food items including milk is common across the country.
In fact, the FSSAI has put on hold the draft guidelines stating that it is waiting for the Parliament to enact the “Whistleblower Bill,” which is yet to be discussed in the Rajya Sabha.
“For, it wants its scheme to be on the line of the proposed legislation whenever it is passed,” said a senior official in the Union Health Ministry which oversees the working of the autonomous body.
The draft guidelines prepared by the FSSAI follows the announcement of Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad in February in 2011 to frame a whistleblower scheme to reward those who provide information against those indulging in adulteration of food. Azad had promised zero tolerance against the food adulterators.
The draft aims to encourage general public and employees to furnish information regarding unsafe food and malpractices within or outside the system. The whistleblowers and informants have been proposed to reward from the funds being made available to the State Governments under a Centrally-sponsored scheme.
However, after seeking public comments, the FSSAI has buried the draft under the carpet till the proposed national Bill is finalised.
The Whistleblower Bill aims at establishing a mechanism to receive complaints relating to disclosure of any allegation of corruption or wilful misuse of power by public servants. But as it seems so as in the case of the national bill, the fate of the draft of the scheme will not see light of the day till then.
“The scheme would have at least served as some deterrent to the unscrupulous elements who have been using harmful chemicals in food items for commercial gains particularly during the period of major festivals,” said the official citing a similar scheme already implemented in the drug sector.
An analysis of the FSSAI surveys has revealed that food adulteration rates over the last three years have shown a steady increase. In 2008, 94,000 samples were examined of which over 8,300 were found to be adulterated (8.79%). In 2009, 1.13 lakh samples were examined of which 11.14% were adulterated. In 2010, 1.17 lakh samples were examined of which over 14,000 samples (12.65%) were adulterated.
A recent survey on milk had found that majority of the milk samples were of poor quality and also contaminated with toxic chemicals such as detergent and fats.
In fact, the FSSAI has put on hold the draft guidelines stating that it is waiting for the Parliament to enact the “Whistleblower Bill,” which is yet to be discussed in the Rajya Sabha.
“For, it wants its scheme to be on the line of the proposed legislation whenever it is passed,” said a senior official in the Union Health Ministry which oversees the working of the autonomous body.
The draft guidelines prepared by the FSSAI follows the announcement of Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad in February in 2011 to frame a whistleblower scheme to reward those who provide information against those indulging in adulteration of food. Azad had promised zero tolerance against the food adulterators.
The draft aims to encourage general public and employees to furnish information regarding unsafe food and malpractices within or outside the system. The whistleblowers and informants have been proposed to reward from the funds being made available to the State Governments under a Centrally-sponsored scheme.
However, after seeking public comments, the FSSAI has buried the draft under the carpet till the proposed national Bill is finalised.
The Whistleblower Bill aims at establishing a mechanism to receive complaints relating to disclosure of any allegation of corruption or wilful misuse of power by public servants. But as it seems so as in the case of the national bill, the fate of the draft of the scheme will not see light of the day till then.
“The scheme would have at least served as some deterrent to the unscrupulous elements who have been using harmful chemicals in food items for commercial gains particularly during the period of major festivals,” said the official citing a similar scheme already implemented in the drug sector.
An analysis of the FSSAI surveys has revealed that food adulteration rates over the last three years have shown a steady increase. In 2008, 94,000 samples were examined of which over 8,300 were found to be adulterated (8.79%). In 2009, 1.13 lakh samples were examined of which 11.14% were adulterated. In 2010, 1.17 lakh samples were examined of which over 14,000 samples (12.65%) were adulterated.
A recent survey on milk had found that majority of the milk samples were of poor quality and also contaminated with toxic chemicals such as detergent and fats.
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