Municipal Administration and Urban Development Minister K.T.Rama Rao has said orders were issued to fill 26 posts of food inspectors for GHMC.
He was responding to the concern raised by MIM members during Question Hour in the Assembly here on Monday over the ‘woefully’ low number of food inspectors though food adulteration was rampant. There are only 11 food inspectors for the entire State; GHMC area has three inspectors.
There are thousands of hotels, restaurants, food outlets in the city from Sherlingampally to Nacharam under GHMC and only three food inspectors to inspect them for quality of food and to contain adulteration. Adulterated food was a major reason for people falling sick, MLAs Mumtaz Ahmed Khan and Mohd Moazam Khan said.
The food inspectors should also inspect commodities like pulses, spices, flour, etc., in super markets and departmental stores and on the days they would have to attend court cases , an entire day would be lost affecting their regular work, they said.
They pointed out there was only one food testing laboratory at Nacharam for the entire State.
The MA&UD Minister assured the members that the government issued orders for filling up 26 posts of food inspectors for GHMC through Telangana State Public Service Commission and the recruitment was under process.
The Minister said all necessary steps were being taken for regular analysis of food samples on inspection of food establishments with the available staff and existing lab facilities. Sharing statistics, he said 150 inspections were being carried out in one month and so far 978 notices were issued and 145 civil cases and 25 criminal cases were registered and convictions were given in 15 cases.
The Nacharam Food Laboratory was enough for the entire State and apart from it, through mobile testing labs, 54 types of tests were being done, he said.
Mr.Rama Rao, however, said that the Food Safety Act was a Central Act and the penalty for adulteration was low. He directed the GHMC to increase the penalty by 10 times and the GHMC was asked to bring in a new Act in addition to the Central Act with the approval of the State Cabinet.
