2 hrs ago
Maharashtra FDA Unveils Year-Round Festival Food Safety Plan
Maharashtra’s food safety department has made a year-long plan for checking food during festivals.
Officials say people buy much more food such as sweets, meat, paneer and dry fruits at these times.
Higher demand can make unsafe or adulterated food more likely.
Festivals will be placed into different risk categories.
Before a festival, officials will plan teams, locations and laboratory support.
They may also check food movement and conduct inspections on the festival day.
Community meals such as bhandaras and langars will be checked for food-safety compliance.
If serious violations are found, officials may file a case.
Maharashtra FDA Commissioner Tukaram Munde announced a standing, year-round order to curb food adulteration during festivals.
The plan ranks festivals by risk and covers celebrations including Ganeshotsav, Diwali, Eid, Christmas and New Year’s Eve.
Enforcement will involve advance mapping and laboratory planning, traffic checks, festival-day inspections and legal action when necessary.
Officials will inspect sweets, paneer, ghee, dry fruits, meat, bakery products, ice and packaged drinking water.
Bhandaras and langars will be monitored, while targeted raids may address chemically ripened fruit and other unsafe products.
- Who
- Tukaram Munde, Commissioner of the Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration, and FDA enforcement teams.
- What
- A standing, four-phase food-safety enforcement plan for festivals was announced to curb adulteration and unsafe food.
- Where
- Across Maharashtra’s regions and during religious and cultural celebrations involving the state’s communities.
- When
- The order is intended to operate throughout the year during upcoming festivals.
- Why
- Festival demand for food rises sharply, increasing the risk that adulterated or unsafe products will be sold or distributed.
Key facts
- Authority
- Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration
- Commissioner
- Tukaram Munde
- Plan duration
- Year-round, with a complete festival calendar
- Enforcement phases
- Advance planning, traffic checks, festival-day action and possible case filing
- Priority products
- Sweets, paneer, ghee, dry fruits, mutton, chicken, bakery items, ice and packaged water
- Community food
- Bhandaras and langars will be visited to check compliance with food-safety law
- Festival examples
- Ganeshotsav, Navratri, Diwali, Eid, Christmas and New Year’s Eve are in the first risk category
Quotes
Tukaram Mundhe
Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration Commissioner
“An order has been issued in this regard. Definitions of all things are set out in the order in which they are created. No order of this kind has ever been made in India before. This has been done to prevent any untoward incident during the festivities. It will be for all religions and for all geographies.”
livemint.com
“In the first phase, mapping, teaming up, availability and labs will be pre-notified. In the second phase, the traffic check will be done. In the third phase, it will be done on the actual festival day. In the fourth stage, a case will be filed if necessary.”
livemint.com
Sources
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