HC directs Union, state govts to act against food adulteration

Jaipur: Taking suo motu cognisance of rising adulteration in food items, including spices, Rajasthan High Court on Monday issued interim directions to the Union and state govts to strictly enforce the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006.
A single judge bench of Justice Anup Dhand asked the state and district food safety authorities to continue sampling food items and mandated a state-level committee, headed by the chief secretary and comprising additional and principal secretaries of the health and food departments, to review efforts to curb food adulteration.The committee will take progress reports from district collectors.
Justice Dhand said food adulteration, being a subject on the concurrent list, allowed both Centre and state to frame penal laws for its prevention.
The bench also asked why the draft legislation, the Food Safety and Standard (Amendment) Bill, 2020, remains in cold storage. “Centre and state are expected to take food adulteration seriously to save lives, and prevent serious and life threatening diseases caused by adulterated and unsafe food,” the court said.
Justice Dhand also said the ‘Shudh Ke Liye Yudh’ campaign should not be limited to festivals or marriage season, asking the state to continue the drive on a day-to-day basis.
“Today, people are busy with various commitments. This is the reason why we spend little time finding out whether the food we consume is healthy and safe,” the court said.
The court also sought a more efficient implementation of the food safety law, directing the State Food Safety Authority (SFSA) to identify high risk areas and times when chances of adulteration are high, and to collect samples accordingly. SFSA should ensure there are well-equipped test labs and conduct regular sampling, it said.