Hundreds of Delhiites stepped out of their homes early on Sunday for the cause of clean and hygienic food. Participating in the safe food walkathon, several street vendors too pledged for the cause.
The walkathon, titled “Surakshit Khadya Abhiyan”, was flagged off by Delhi Health Minister Satyendra Jain.
Speaking on the occasion, the Minister said, “With heightened consumer demand for safe and unadulterated food, food safety and hygienic practices are the need of the hour. There is also an increasing need to focus on safety of street food, enjoyed by all sections of society.”
The walkathon saw several parallel activities including street plays, a painting competition and a skit by the Jago Grahak Jago team. Children particularly seemed to enjoy the sessions in which they were trained on the proper way to wash hands. Several street food vendors shared their experiences as well. The participants included senior citizens, children and people from all walks of life.
“Access to safe food is a basic human right,” said Alka Kaul, the chairperson of Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), the Delhi State Council, which organised the event.
“Our goal should be to provide high-quality safe food every time and everywhere. We believe that in today’s complex and interdependent food supply chain. Food safety is a shared responsibility of the farmers, the food industry, regulators as well as consumers,” she added.
The CII has also formed a Surakshit Khadya Abhiyan Steering committee with members from National Association of Street Vendors of India (NASVI), Voluntary Organisation in Interest of Consumer Education (VOICE), Cargill and other industry representatives.
The walkathon will be followed by seven more safe food walkathons and more than 20 consumer advocacy programmes across the country in the next six months.
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