PIONEER EDGE NEWS SERVICE | Dehradun
Shopkeepers will not be able to sell Kuttu Ata (buckwheat flour) without a license or registration and strict action will be taken if food safety standards are not followed. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) on Friday considering the upcoming Navratri festival.
According to FDA commissioner R Rajesh Kumar, Kuttu Ata will be sold only in sealed packets. Each packet must carry details such as the packing date, expiry date name and address of the manufacturer or repacker, establishment name and license number. Open sale of Kuttu Ata will not be allowed and officials will keep special watch on such practices.
Kumar said that the FDA has directed all district-level officers to ensure compliance with the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 along with related rules and regulations. Inspections will be carried out before and during Navratri to check storage, packing, distribution and sale of Kuttu Ata.
Records of purchase and sale must be maintained in writing by every food business operator. The commissioner also stated that district-level quick response teams will coordinate with Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP) cells to act promptly if reports of illness linked to Kuttu Ata consumption are received. Samples collected during the festival period will be tested on priority at food and drug laboratories.
The FDA additional commissioner Tajbar Singh Jaggi said that the department will ensure that only safe food reaches consumers during festivals. He added that violations of food safety rules will invite strict legal action against both large and small traders.
