Nagpur Feb 4 Business Bureau
Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT), the apex body of trading community has declared to launch a nationwide aggressive agitation against Food Safety and Standards Act, if it is not deferred immediately by the Union Government as the last date of obtaining registration or license under the Act from the concerned Department is expiring on February 4, 2014. CAIT has demanded the Government to defer the Act and constitute a Joint Committee of officials and trade leaders to make and in depth study of the Act and to recommend the Government necessary changes in the said Act. The continuation of food trade without registration will attract fine of Rs 5 lakh and imprisonment for six months.
The Act is applicable not only on the traders but has wider implications even on a common man as wherever the food items are served for profit or even for non-profit motive which includes even religious places like temples, Gurudwara, wedding, social function, meetings, conferences, seminars etc. Further, Mahila Grah Udyog, cottage and rural industry, self employed persons, fishermen, roadside vendors, hawkers, small and medium restaurants and food places, farmers, tribal groups, honey bee collectors, slaughter houses, small traders, traditional halwais and even the social service schemes like mid day meals etc., of the Government will be under the purview of the Act.
Even the enterprises involved in processing, packagiing, storage, distribution, imports or transportation will be liable to comply the provisions of the Act. National Secretary General of the CAIT Praveen Khandelwal said that a CAIT delegation has already submitted a detailed representation to Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad during a meeting with him on January, 14, 2014. Though, Azad has assured CAIT to defer the Act and to constitute a Joint Committee of senior officials and CAIT representatives but so far no notification of deferment has been issued although the last date expires on February 4, 2014 and such in the absence of any notification of deferment so far, there was much panic among trading community of the country.
He said that CAIT has also taken up the issue with Union Law Minister Kapil Sibal who has already had extensively discussion with Union Health Minister Gulam Nabi Azad who is convinced that the Act needs a re-look raised by CAIT. Even the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj and Dr Murli Manohar Joshi, Chairman of Public Accounts Committee of Lok Sabha has already sent communications to Azad supporting the demand of deferment of the Act raised by CAIT.
Meanwhile, in the wake of forthcoming Lok Sabha polls and to raise traders issues strongly and prominently, CAIT is holding an All India Traders Convention on February 27 and February 28, 2014 at New Delhi which would be inaugurated by Narendra Modi, Gujarat Chief Minister. CAIT has also invited Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi and leaders of other prominent political parties including BJP, Congress,Shiv Sena, CPI, CPM, Samajwadi Party, Bahujan Samaj Party, Rashtriya Janta Dal, Janata Dal (United), AIADMK, DMK, Akali Dal, BJD, TDP etc. CAIT will present its Trader’ Charter and will seek views of the political parties.
The convention would discuss core issues like multiple taxation system, archaic laws, acts and rules, harassment and victimization at the hands of bureaucracy, absence of any national or state level trade policy for traders, absence of any viable financial mechanism to provide financial assistance to traders, Government policies to crush small traders have become the order of the day and unfortunately those in power are least bothered about this sorry state of affairs and have always taken the trading community in a light manner.
FDI in retail, FDI in retail in E- commerce, absence of any viable financial mechanism for traders, Free Trade Agreement with European countries and other nations, upgradation and modernisation of existing retail trade are some major issues of concern of traders.
No comments:
Post a Comment