Food and
Drug Administration officials say paan shop owners are now employing
female aides, who conceal packets of the prohibited product in the folds
of their saris, producing them for customers only on getting the
vendors' nod.
A
bottleneck on the road towards effective implementation of the ban on
gutkha that had so far remained under wraps — literally — has now been
uncovered. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) officials say paan shop
owners are now using female aides to sell the prohibited product.
Illustration
/ Amit Bandre. Hide and seek: When a customer approaches a vendor for
gutkha, the latter collects the money and diverts the client towards the
woman concealing the product
When a customer approaches a vendor for gutkha, the latter collects the
money and diverts the client towards the woman concealing the product
In a singular modus operandi, the women hide the gutkha packets in
the folds of their saris, producing one — like a rabbit out of a hat —
for a customer on getting the vendors’ nod.
“I witnessed
this a couple of times some months ago. The lady would supply gutkha to a
purchaser after getting a signal from the paan stall owner. Since there
is no direct exchange of money between the woman and the patron, it is
difficult to take any action,” said Shashikant Kekare, joint
commissioner (food), FDA, Pune.
Chew on that! Gutkha of various brands seized by FDA officials in the city. File Pic
How it works
According to officials, when a new customer approaches a vendor for
gutkha, the latter collects the money and diverts the client towards the
woman concealing the product.
“The lady stands some distance
away from the stall. Meanwhile, the vendor gesticulates to her about
the number of packets to be supplied to the customer,” Kekare added.
FDA did try to deploy female inspectors to overcome the sari
roadblock. “It was difficult to take action against the women as no
money was handed to them by the customers. We did set out the lady
inspectors from our team, but as soon as the culprits get a tip-off they
stop the practice for a while.”
Rs 1.52 cr Value of gutkha confiscated in Pune by FDA since July 19, 2012
Licence please!
In a bid towards effective implementation of Food Safety and
Standards Act 2006, a committee has been set up under the chairmanship
of district collector Vikas Deshmukh. The Act became effective in the
district in August 2011, according to which it is mandatory for each
stallholder who sells consumable items to have a licence or to get the
shop registered.
While briefing the media, Deshmukh said 7,997
licences have been granted to stall owners so far, while 12,021 stands
have been registered.
-page-001.jpg)
