Sep 19, 2017
Expedite check on edible oil brands, HC to food safety dept
Madurai: Directing the food safety and drug administration to expedite its task of checking edible oil brands on various parameters, the Madurai bench of the Madras high court on Monday further directed it to enforce the department's WhatsApp number (9444042322) created for receiving complaints from consumers on adulteration, poor quality or labelling defects of the oil scrupulously.
The division bench of justices K K Sasidharan and G R Swaminathan gave this direction while disposing of a petition filed by one K Ravichandran that sought to constitute committee to examine edible oil packets available in market to ascertain whether it is fit for consumption.
During hearing, the special government pleader (SGP) M Govidan told the court the state government's Tamil Nadu Food Safety and Drug Administration, created on December 22, 2011, is acting effectively for the enforcement of Food Safety and Standards Act (FSSA), 2006.
Since the inception of the department, 1,402 edible oil samples were analysed, of which 20 were found unsafe and 507 were found contravene to the FSSA. Eighteen cases were filed before the judicial magistrate courts which gave conviction in eight cases and imposed Rs 1.68 lakh penalty. A total of 384 cases were put forth before the adjudication officer, of which 238 were convicted and Rs 49.89 lakh was imposed as penalties, the SGP said.
Besides, based on complaints given by public, the department made inspections. Now, the food safety and drug administration commissioner P Amudha has constituted a state-level committee to monitor the quality of edible oil based on FSSA.
The committee, having deputy director of the department as its head and designated officers of Salem, Erode, Namakkal, Virudhunagar, Madurai and Tuticorin as its members will look into adulteration in edible oil, adherence to FSSA standards and labelling/ mislabelling.
The committee will meet immediately to check/ scrutinise the various brands of edible oil available in the market for safety, standards and labelling as per FSSA and rules, the SGP said.
He also said instructions will be given to the district offices to lift the samples of all major oil brands and send a report to the state committee on the test results and labelling discrepancies.
New norms on anvil to deal with sub-standard imports
Imported items will have to be of a certain minimum quality; FSSAI, BIS, and APEDA are working towards setting standards and technical regulations
The government is working towards strengthening standards norms and certification for the shipments coming into the country, as a part of its strategy to rein sub-standard imports from countries including China.
“We are pushing for certain standardisation of products that come into the country. This will not only result in exports promotion, but also curb cheap imports from countries,” a senior government official told Moneycontrol.
Any item that enters the Indian shores must adhere to certain quality and standards, the official said, adding that sector regulators such as Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), Bureau of Indian Standards, Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), among others are working towards setting certain standards and technical regulations for imports.
Another government official said that the commerce ministry has told other ministries to consistently monitor and review imports of goods pertaining to their industry.
Former Commerce Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had said that India should provide quality goods at an affordable price and set standards, rather than following them.
In May, Sitharaman also launched the India Standards Portal that acts as a hub for all information on standards, technical regulations, accreditation practices, and the related bodies in India.
The development comes at a time when there has also been a growing clamour on for import restriction on items, especially related to renewable energy, electronics and information technology as inward shipments of these products has escalated from China.
Indian steel industry had in the last two years faced the brunt of surge in cheap imports, especially from China that rendered local companies uncompetitive.
Similarly, in the last two years, government had imposed quality control order on steel products, after imports Indian market was flooded with poor quality imports of the alloy. Of the total inward shipments, China—the largest producer, consumer and exporter of the alloy—accounted for most of it.
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