The Delhi High Court on Wednesday stressed the need to ramp up testing of food products in the national capital to ascertain their quality, saying the food cycle has become “corrupted” and being the apex body, the FSSAI needs to take steps to ensure that there is enough testing.
A bench headed by Acting Chief Justice Manmohan, while specifically raising concerns on the quality of milk and milk products, sought an affidavit from the Delhi government with respect to the level of testing, the number of food-inspecting teams here and the budget of the department concerned.
“The FSSAI needs to ramp up testing. It is minimal. What sort of products are we eating? We do not know. Our food cycle has got so corrupted. You are taking no steps. You are living in some ivory tower. You pick up any food product, there is a problem. There is so much pesticide,” the bench, also comprising Justice Manmeet P S Arora, said. The FSSAI counsel said food testing was carried out by the state food safety commissioners. Noting that 25 samples per food safety officer per month is the prescribed norm for testing, the court remarked that appropriate random testing had to be carried out given the city’s population. “Look at the population of Delhi. How much food consumption is taking place on a daily basis. How many FSOs are there in Delhi? Sampling needs to be ramped up,” Justice Manmohan said.
The court was hearing a suo motu case initiated by it in 2010 following a news report on the use of certain pesticides for growing vegetables, which cause serious neurological problems, kidney damage, skin diseases, cancer and other grievous ailments.
In a separate matter relating to the shifting of nine dairies to better locations, the court again flagged the need for testing of milk and sought a report from the authorities. Some of the dairies, it pointed out, are located next to landfills and cattle consumed contaminated food.
“Today, the administration has turned a blind eye as if these dairies do not exist at all. Milk from here is used in sweets and chocolates and it is entering our food. Cattle have been moved to the second floor we are told and then they never come down in their life. Imaging the cruelty and amount of waste and excreta among which they live. Oxytocin is a banned drug, but it is rampant in these dairy colonies. Responsibility needs to be fixed,” the bench told chief secretary and MCD commissioner who were present virtually in the hearing.
PTI
