:dateline:Every fourth food sample has been found adulterated in Punjab. This year, 27 per cent food samples have been found adulterated.
According to a report prepared by Punjab�s Food and Drug Administration, 7,826 samples of 17 food and beverage items were collected this year so far for quality testing. It was found that out of them, 2,159 were adulterated.
The adulteration included items which were unsafe or sub-standard or mis-branded or contained extraneous matter.
The samples which were collected included food items like spices, bakery products, sweets, tea, coffee, edible oils etc. In beverages, there were milk, alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks and mineral water etc.
As per the report, the nature of adulteration varied from item to item.
Compared to the record of previous years, the adulteration rate has witnessed a spike in the past two years.Till 2013, the adulteration was reported around 10 per cent. When it comes to the reason behind the sudden increase in percentage of adulterated food items in the past two years, officials of Punjab�s Food and Drug Administration attribute it to the new Food Safety and Standards Rules 2011.
�Under the new Act, our working style has seen a sea change. Now, we have dedicated staff and state�of-the-art testing facility. We are collecting more number of samples and our efficiency is also increasing,� said Dr Naresh Kumar, nodal officer, Food Safety, Punjab.
Again no comment from RSS Harinder about how ‘wonderful and peaceful everything is in Punjab’. Contaminated food added to the growing list of increased female infanticide, drug addiction, pollution, extra judicial killings, torture, kidnapping, false arrests, civil liberties violations, sacrilege, state bankruptcy and corruption, nepotism and patronage.