May 31, 2015
Despite ban, users still have access to tobacco products
COIMBATORE: Inside the food safety department office are six tonnes of seized tobacco, waiting to be destroyed. Despite repeated raids and seizures by the department since January, chewable tobacco in various forms continues to be sold secretly by small petty and pan shops across the city.
More than two years after the state banned the production, stocking, distribution and sale of tobacco products such as gutkha and pan masala under the Food Safety and Standards of India Act, 2006, the substance continues to be present in godowns and shops across the city. "Large quantities of tobacco are stored in godowns in Variety Hall, Ukkadam, R S Puram and Mettupalayam Road," said a food safety officer in charge of Sukrawarpet. "Once we start raiding godowns in the city, they move the loads overnight to hired godowns in the periphery of the district like Mettupalayam Road, Sulur and Sathy Road," he said.
The godown owners have been issued notices and cases have also been filed against them by the food safety department.
A majority of substance seized from godowns this year has been Hans, a brand of chewable tobacco that claims to be manufactured and based in New Delhi. "The tobacco industry, which is a massive lobby, seems to have split various districts and markets among themselves informally," said the officer. "It is the Hans brand which dominates Coimbatore and Tirupur , this is besides the tobacco concentrates being sold for being used in beedas," said A Karnal, who runs a beeda stall on Government Arts College Road. Hans is a chewable tobacco product which is usually kept below a person's tongue or between his lips and teeth and suck on the juice it produces. This is believed to give a person an immediate high because the juice contains nicotine which easily mixes with a person's blood. This substance is available in Rs 5 sachets.
Besides this, there are many tobacco concentrates which are sold by brands like Mangal Singh, Zarda Patta and Amdu which are usually mixed in beedas which are sold in forms called 120 and 420.
Ask any regular beeda user in the city for the place where you get "beedas" which gives you a high, and pat comes the reply — Thomas Street. This street has the dubious distinction of having the most number of beeda stalls which sell tobacco filled pan options. "These beeda stall owners claim that they do not even know that the tobacco filled form of Gulkand is banned," said designated food safety officer, R Kathiravan. "These beedas when consumed for the first few times can make a person feel dizzy, high and even nauseous," he said.
After a spate of raids alerted pan and department stall owners in the city, they have begun offering these products only to their "regular customers". Since there are too many of these small retailers of the banned tobacco products, the food safety department has decided to focus on wholesalers and distributors instead. "Based on these labels stuck on the products and group discussions with other food safety officers we know that these products, especially Hans, are manufactured in New Delhi and its outskirts. The products are then brought to Tamil Nadu by trucks, a small quantity by train and then very small quantities like a couple of boxes by courier," said food safety officer Kathiravan.
"Here the state head distributor, which in Hans' case is based in Chennai, sends it to district level distributors," said a senior food safety officer. "After tobacco was banned, these distributors use line men to distribute small quantities of products to shops across the city," said Kathiravan. "We have conducted raids by following the movement of the line men closely," he added.
Tobacco products, containing nicotine which acts a strong stimulant, are consumed by people from all economic backgrounds, say doctors. "It is consumed by a lot of shop keepers, construction workers and even small time businessmen," said Dr P Guhan, director, Sri Ramakrishna Institute of Oncology and Research. "These tobacco products contain a lot of impurities besides nicotine, which are carcinogenic," he said.
However, consumption of tobacco has gone down,say officers. "Though we do not have statistics to prove it, tobacco consumption has reduced because we have managed to reduce the availability," said food safety commissioner, Kumar Jayanth. "It is not openly sold anymore or sold only in black at unaffordable rates. That is an indicator," he said.
Maggi fallout: Nestle's Pantnagar unit under watch
District authorities in Udham Singh Nagar collect samples from factory under Food Safety and Standards Act
The raging controversy over the alleged high chemicals in Nestle’s Maggi noodles on Saturday reached its Pantnagarfacility in Uttarakhand which came under scanner of the state food safety department.
The district authorities in Udham Singh Nagar collected samples from Nestle’s Pantnagar factory under the Food Safety and Standards Act 2006.
A high level team of the state food safety department was sent to the Pantnagar plant of Nestle India to collect samples of Maggi noodles. “We have collected some samples of Maggi Noodles from Nestle’s Pantnagar factory. The samples will be sent to various laboratories,” said Pankaj Kumar PandeyDistrict Magistrate of Udham Singh Nagar.
A sub-divisional magistrate (SDM) was also present at the factory when the samples were being collected, Pandey said.
Maggi noodles row: Case filed against Nestle, 5 others
BARABANKI, MAY 30
A case was lodged on Saturday against Nestle India in a local court here over safety standards of its Maggi product, while actors Amitabh Bachhan, Madhuri Dixit and Preity Zinta have also been separately dragged to the court for promoting the two- minute noodles brand.
While the case against Nestle India and five others was filed by the UP food regulator FSDA ( Food Safety and Drug Administration), a local advocate filed a separate case against the three cine personalities.
"Following FSDA Commissioner P P Singhs permission to file a case against Nestle India, a case has been filed in the court of ACJM (Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate) here," Barabanki Food Safety Officer V K Pandey said. The case has been lodged against the companys Nestle Nagal Kalan Industrial Area unit ( Haroli, Una in HP), Delhibased Nestle India Limited, an Easy Day outlet in Barabanki and the Delhi- based parent firm Easy Day, as also against and their FMCG ( fast moving consumer goods) managers, Mohan Gupta and Shabab Alam, Pandey said.
The FSDA had found monosodium glutamate and lead in excess of the prescribed limit in Maggi samples tested by it.
The FSDA had collected the samples from the Easy Day store in Barabanki and had sent the consignment for testing, which showed that the quantum of lead present was 17 times more than the stipulated limit, which is considered hazardous.
The Union Consumer Affairs Ministry has also asked the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India to look into the matter while Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan said yesterday that a class action suit can also be initiated in the matter if a complaint is lodged in this regard with the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC).
Pantnagar factory under lens
DEHRADUN, 30 MAY
The raging controversy over the alleged high chemicals in Nestle’s Maggi noodles on Saturday reached its Pantnagar facility in Uttarakhand which came under scanner of the state food safety department. The district authorities in Udham Singh Nagar collected samples from Nestle’s Pantnagar factory under the Food Safety and Standards Act 2006.
Maggi noodles row: Case lodged against Nestle, 5 others
Union consumer affairs ministry asks the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India to look into the matter
Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan on Friday said a class action suit can also be initiated in the matter if a complaint is lodged in this regard with the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission.
Barabanki: A case was lodged on Saturday against Nestle India in a Barabanki court over safety standards of its Maggi product, while actors Amitabh Bachhan, Madhuri Dixit and Preity Zinta have also been separately dragged to the court for promoting the ‘two-minute’ noodles brand.
While the case against Nestle India and five others was filed by the UP food regulator FSDA (Food Safety and Drug Administration), a local advocate filed a separate case against the three cine personalities.
“Following FSDA commissioner P.P. Singh’s permission to file a case against Nestle India, a case has been filed in the court of ACJM (Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate) here,” Barabanki Food Safety Officer V K Pandey said.
The case has been lodged against the company’s Nestle Nagal Kalan Industrial Area unit (Haroli, Una in HP), Delhi-based Nestle India Limited, an Easy Day outlet in Barabanki and the Delhi-based parent firm Easy Day, as also against and their FMCG (fast moving consumer goods) managers, Mohan Gupta and Shabab Alam, Pandey said.
The FSDA had found monosodium glutamate and lead in excess of the prescribed limit in Maggi samples tested by it. The FSDA had collected the samples from the Easy Day store in Barabanki and had sent the consignment for testing, which showed that the quantum of lead present was 17 times more than the stipulated limit, which is considered hazardous.
The Union Consumer Affairs Ministry has also asked the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India to look into the matter while Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan said on Friday that a class action suit can also be initiated in the matter if a complaint is lodged in this regard with the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC).
The second case has been lodged by a local advocate in Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) court against the cine stars for promoting Maggi noodles, saying they have been found to be harmful for public health.
There were no comments from the company.
Talking to newspersons, the advocate said he has lodged the case in the court of CJM against the three film stars who have claimed the instant noodles as healthy in TV promotions under sections 420, 272, 273 and 109.
He said these film stars have earned hefty sums by terming Maggi noodles as healthy in advertisements and alleged “this wrong publicity amounts to malafide intentions and playing with the health of the kids and young people of the country”.
Barabanki court admits complaint against Nestle India
LUCKNOW: A case has been lodged in a local court in Barabanki on Saturday against Nestle India over inadequate safety standards of its product – Maggi. The complaint was lodged by a food safety officer of Barabanki, Sanjay Singh. The complaint was accepted and admitted on Saturday. The court also asked Nestle India and five others, including retailers Easy Day, to remain present before it on July 1, in relation to the case.
Confirming the development, designated officer (food safety), in-charge of Barabanki, VK Pandey, said, “Following FSDA Commissioner PK Singh’s permission to file a case against Nestle India, a case has been filed in the court of ACJM (Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate) here.”
The case has been lodged against the company’s Nestle Nagal Kalan Industrial Area unit (Haroli, Una in HP), Delhi-based Nestle India Limited, an Easy Day outlet in Barabanki, and the Delhi-based parent firm Easy Day, as also against and their FMCG (fast moving consumer goods) managers, Mohan Gupta and Shabab Alam, Pandey said.
Meanwhile on Saturday, more than 4 teams of FSDA continued their sampling exercise under the surveillance activity in Lucknow, and collected samples of Maggi from shops located in different areas including the posh Jopling Road.
On behalf of FSDA, Pandey had collected the samples from the Easy Day store in Barabanki and had sent the consignment for testing to a Kolkata laboratory, which showed that the quantum of lead present was 17 times more than the stipulated limit, which is considered hazardous. It also found presence of mono sodium glutamate.
Following the crack down on Nestle India, the Union ministry of Consumer Affairs had also directed the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India to look into the matter. On Friday, Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan had said a class action suit may also be initiated in the matter if a complaint is lodged with the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC).
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