Dinakaran News

Gutka traders given June 22 deadline to destroy stocks

Traders who are in possession of the banned gutka, pan masala, and tobacco nicotine-added products should destroy or remove them from their shops before June 22, said K. Baskaran, District Collector.

The traders were given a month’s time to remove them and those failing to do so would attract stern action, he said speaking at a meeting with officials to discuss the matter here on Saturday.

The Collector said awareness should be created among school and college students about the ban in the morning assemblies.

Municipal commissioners of three municipalities in Thanjavur district should conduct meetings of revenue divisional officers, police officers and commercial tax officers periodically.

They should conduct raids, identify places where these articles are kept and destroy them.

People can contact the following numbers and give information if the banned articles are sold by any trader in the district.

People can call 04362-276511, for Thanjavur region food security officer Chandramohan on 9444111214, for Kumbakonam region Food security officer V. Mahesh on phone number 9363366866, and for Pattukottai region, Pattukottai Food Security Officer Mahadevan on phone number 812422236.

People can contact District Food Security Officer N. Dakshinamurthy on 7373078502. People can contact in person the office for Food Security and Drug Management Department, office complex of the Deputy Director of Health Services, Gandhiji Road, Thanjavur.

Team formed

A nine-member team has been formed in the district to monitor the effective implementation of the ban on the production and marketing of gutka, pan masala and tobacco in the district.

The committee, led by the district collector, will include the Superintendent of Police, District Revenue Officer, Deputy Director of Health Services, Chief Educational Officer, District Social Welfare Officer, municipal commissioners, Commercial Tax Officer, and Regional Transport Officer.

The Collector in a release issued here on Saturday said that stringent action would be taken against those who continue to produce the banned items, stock them, and market them.

The police and Commercial Tax Department officials will check the vehicles transporting these banned items from other States and other districts at all the check-post.

The officials will prepare a list of those who continue to involve in this business and blacklist them.

---

They have been told to destroy the stocks or face action

Officials told to keep a vigil on gutka, paan masala traders

This is why you got food poisoned: 8 million people in Hyderabad and only 4 food safety officers!

If we are poisoned by one of these eateries, then don’t complain, as the City Corporation seems least concerned for food safety and its standards.

This, you many not digest. Four food safety officers of GHMC must conduct the impossible task of ensuring food safety standards of a City of eight million.

The state government does not seem to be too conerned about implementing the Food Safety and Standards Act 2006, says consumer forum office-bearers. Apart from inspecting the samples of raw food items like oil and pulses, these officers also have to obey the orders of the Health Wing under GHMC in dealing with restaurants.

Meanwhile, the monthly samples, which must be checked by the Food Safety Officers, has recently gone up from an average of 8 to 22.

According to one of the Food Safety Officers, there should have been at least 18 such officers in the GHMC covering all the circles. “We used to check eight samples each month, but recently the target was set to 22,” says one of the Officers, under the condition of anonymity.

Besides inspecting samples, these officials are engaged by the GHMC for inspecting food items of hotels and roadside eateries under the guidance of two AMOH, (Assistant Medical Officers of Health) who will either act at their will or on complaints from the Health Wing of Corporation.

Interestingly, the post of the Chief Medical Officer of Health is also vacant for about five months, since Dr D Shalini Devi was transferred.

Even though the GHMC is set to start the process of filling up 2,500 jobs, the process may take at least one or two years. “This particular segment of food safety will be filled with 26 jobs during this process, but in the second phase. Even though the government has given a nod for this, it would not surprise many if the coming government forgets its promise”, laments the official.

According to K R K Murthy, convenor, Consumer Forum of India, if the situation persists in the City, health issues such as Diarrhoea and other food-related health problems will arise. “Higher level officials like Commissioner of Food Safety should make surprise visits to restaurants. Many top restaurants are failing to meet the expected standards. One of the reasons is the fact that these same Food safety officials who are crying foul get their cut from them”, says Murthy. He believes that once the Parliament passes the Bill on Food Safety in this Monsoon Session, all the States will oblige.

Eateries have their way as authorities doze

Despite concerns raised about hygiene, the authorities are yet to conduct inspections and raids.

A few months back, the raids on various eateries in the district by the Food and Safety Department had unearthed some ‘stale’ facts about the food being served to the people. However, the initial enthusiasm on the part of the Health Department seems to have died down.
Despite the Monsoon triggering ‘hygiene concerns’, the authorities are yet to initiate any step in this regard and according to the sources, no inspection has been conducted in any eatery in the city recently. “As per the Food Safety Standards Act, the eateries must follow some norms. Mainly, the workers in the eateries should have health cards and the entire space, especially kitchen, must be kept clean. The kitchen must be painted white. Moreover, the eateries should keep certificates that prove the quality of water used. However, many are still functioning under unhygienic condition and the Food and Safety Department are turning a blind eye towards the issue,” sources said.
According to the details collected from the department using a Right to Information Act (RTI), they have not yet taken any action against the hotel owners who were found to have provided stale and unclean food for customers last year. “The department had conducted raids on as many as 256 eateries in the district. They have also collected the samples of the stale food for tests. However, no concrete action has been taken against the eateries till now. The sample testing are not yet been completed,” the RTI reveals. Meanwhile, the Hotels and Restaurants Association members said the eateries were maintaining hygiene. “We are sticking to all the norms as per the Food Safety Standards Act,” they said.
District Food Safety Officer Ajit Kumar refuted the allegations and said they were conducting inspections at hotels and restaurants.
“Last week, we have conducted inspections at the eateries in the eastern side of the district. We have also suspended the licences of few hotels found flouting norms,” he said.

Food Safety still a distant dream for State

Ranchi News: In this steaming heat, the burning road, the stinking heap of garbage as the dusk turns afternoon, a bare foot walks all around the streets of Firayalal in search of food. Few sits besides the garbage disposing lane, wearing a torn out cloth, holding a small bag and begs every passersby for food and money for survival. A poor family waits for the elder most who has been out for site to work and will bring the meal of the day for them. But how safe is the food they get?

The situation is particularly serious in Jharkhand. The newly formed State is one of the country’s most insecure in terms of food and nutrients. A major part of the population lives below the poverty line and above 70% of the state are engaged in agriculture.
After almost five years of its enactment, the Jharkhand Government finally brought the Food Safety and Standards Act in force. As per the notification issued by the State Health Department, Health Secretary would officiate as the Food Safety Commissioner, whereas Food Controller as the Director In-Chief, Food.
“The new act lays more emphasis on selling of quality food grains/eatables, while the old act, Food Adulteration Control Act 1954, had many loopholes that often allowed the culprits evade severe penal action,” Health Secretary K Vidyasagar said.
However, this more emphasis on quality foods becomes irrelevant when it comes to practical terms. Roadside hawkers, grocery shops, tiffinwallas in the town can be spotted almost everywhere selling and distributed adulterated food.

‘The street hawkers are not provide spaces by Government to sell their stuffs. If they were allotted some legal space or land for the business, it would have been easy to monitor the quality’, said an official.
The authority of issuing license to food shops has been delegated to sub-divisional officer which was earlier with civil surgeons. The officials could now take at least four food samples instead of previously norms of three for better lab testing. The new Act says it tightens the noose around food grain sellers indulging in supplying adulterated eatables; the Act empowers the Food Safety cell officers to file the case against the offending firm. But the scenario remains the same as before. The use of poor quality products and adulterated food has still the sale in the market. The Ranchi officials and the staff uncharged of the Food and Safety departments refuses to give any comments or explanations in this issue.
The big issue remains is the dangers and the consequences of consuming these adulterated food and available in those stalls which can cause stomach ailments, jaundice, and cholera among other diseases.

Grapevine

‘Fast’ food body

Days after the appointment of its chairperson K Chandramouli was challenged by an NGO in the Supreme Court, the Food Safety & Standards Authority of India seems to be in hurry to fill up all posts lying vacant for the past several months. No doubt, the FSSAI, which is under the supervision of the Health Ministry, wants to show to the apex court that the organisation is run by competitive persons.

Dinamalar