MANGALDAI, Oct 29 - The alleged functioning of a section of food processing and manufacturing units flouting existing government norms, including the violation of Food Safety and Standards Act 2006 and the Legal Metrology Act 2009 for a quite long time in the greater Kharupetia area in Darrang district has become a matter of concern. This allegation was proved correct recently when the Assistant Controller of Legal Metrology, Mangaldai seized weighing instruments from the campus of M/s Shree Giridhar Food Pdcts located at Nagajan area of Kharupetia and owned by one Satya Deo Gupta.
According to sources, a team of officials of the department led by its Inspector Mukul Dutta recently visited the campus of the food processing unit to inspect the verification status of the weighing or measuring apparatus in use. But the apparatus were found not duly verified and stamped for the last 3/4 years. The inspecting officer immediately registered an offence against the management of the unit for violation of Section 24 of the Legal Metrology Act 2009 and seized one non auto electronic weighing instrument in the presence of the custodian of the unit. Moreover, the management also reportedly failed to produce any valid packaging license before the inspecting official and the authority has directed the management to produce valid license of packaging under the provision of the Legal Metrology (Packaging Commodities) Rules 2011.
Meanwhile the said food processing unit, the name of which is printed in the packet of some consumable products under commercial brand names such as �Sanam Amla�, �Ameer� etc., allegedly has failed to maintain minimum standards of health and hygiene, thereby creating every possibility of serious health hazard for its consumers. It may be mentioned here that the management of the food processing unit got into a physical altercation with a section of media persons while the latter attempted to bring to light the unsafe, unhygienic environment for storage, processing of the raw ingredients of the packaging products in the campus surrounded by high walls but without any information board. The doubtful character of the management of the unit has already been brought to the notice of the officer in charge of Kharupetia PS, the in charge District Food Safety Officer of Darrang Sanjib Boro and Joint Director of Health Services, Darrang Dr Pronita Saikia for action.
