Form panel to find office for food safety tribunal: High court

Jaipur: Rajasthan High Court on Wednesday directed the chief secretary to constitute a committee of secretaries to find a place to house the office of food safety appellate tribunal.

The division bench of Justice Ajay Rastogi and Justice D C Somani had summoned principal secretary, general administration department (GAD) over not been able to provide a proper office and staff to the food safety tribunal taking the government to task in the last hearing by stating that that "even after five years and after the court taking cognizance for constituting food safety appellate tribunal, still the tribunal has not been constituted so far, in discharge its obligation under the Food Safety and Standards Act 2006." 

Principal secretary of GAD P K Goyal who appeared in the court on Wednesday said the there is no independent office space available except a few rooms at the Swasth Bhawan (Building of the medical and health department) to house the tribunal. The court was not happy with the reply. It retorted "should we put up a tent in the high court premises to house the tribunal?"

AAG Dharam Veer Tholia who represented the GAD said the government had already allotted four rooms on the third floor of the Swasth Bhawan and if required more rooms could be made available. He said the government had already allotted the Van Bhawan near the High court building following the department of Forest and Wild life shifted to its new building to the proposed circuit bench of the National Green Tribunal, Human Rights Commission, Department of Water Resources and Indira Gandhi Canal Board. There is no space available in that building to accommodate the Food Safety Appellate Tribunal.

He also informed that in compliance of its earlier order the government had sanctioned four LDCs, three MPWs, and reader stenographers.

The court then directed the chief secretary to form a committee of Principal Secretaries of GAD, Finance and Medical and Health with chairman of the Tribunal an ex officio member and directed to hold meeting on May 27 at 11.30 am to find an office to the tribunal and inform the court on May 30 of its decision.