Comprehensively reviewing food safety act, government tell SC

New Delhi, Dec 10 (IANS) The central government Wednesday told the Supreme Court that it was engaged in the exercise of giving a comprehensive relook to the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, in light of its orders and the representation received from the public.

Allowing the government six weeks more to complete the exercise it has undertaken, a bench of Justice M.Y.Eqbal and Justice Shiva Kirti Singh told it to do it seriously and expeditiously.

The court said this as counsel Anurag Tomar appearing for the petitioner Swamy Achyutanand Tirth told the court that the orders for a review of the FSSA was passed a year ago but things are moving at snail's pace.

As counsel Indira Sahni appearing for the government told the court about the efforts that are being made, the court said they should also look into making penal provision that would have deterring effect on those indulging in adulteration.

The government in its affidavit before the court said that the parliamentary standing committee on Health and Family Welfare too has recommended taking immediate measures to deal with the incidents of rampant adulteration of food items in the country.

The committee has also urged the government to give more teeth to the FSSA, 2006, and the Food Authority constituted under it to tackle these incidents.

The court in the last hearing of the matter on Nov 11 had said: "We hope and trust that in the coming winter session of parliament, government will take appropriate steps in this direction (of amending FSSA, 2006)."

The apex court by its February 2014 order had said: "Considering the gravity of the situation as well as in larger public interest it is highly necessary that Union of India should think of making appropriate amendments in the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, so that such type of crimes could be curbed to a large extent."

The court had said this taking into consideration a report by the Dehradun based Himalayan Institute of Medical Science which said that milk samples which were tested indicated that all the milk samples including double toned milk collected from different places showed presence of urea and detergents as common adulterants.

Swamy Achyutanand Tirth has moved the apex court seeking its intervention to curb the large scale adulteration of milk including production and sale of synthetic milk.