MUMBAI: A public interest litigation (PIL) filed before the Bombay high court has now questioned draft amendments to food safety rules that would permit extra caffeine to be added to non-alcoholic beverages.
A PIL by the Society for Awareness for Civil Rights, a Mumbai-based NGO, was scheduled but did not reach its first hearing on Tuesday in the HC. The petition said an April 2013 draft regulations issued by the health ministry ought to be set aside as they would permit manufacturers of "energy drinks" to add caffeine in excess of 145 ppm per litre.
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India, the apex body that governs food safety in the country, also seeks to create a "new category in beverages with a view to permit manufacturers or importers to sell beverages with higher caffeine content than what is permitted by earlier rules," said the PIL.
The PIL said the HC must direct the Centre to classify caffeine as a "drug" and not "food" because of its deleterious effect on a person's health if consumed in excess.
"Caffeine is a habit-forming additive," said the PIL.
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