Lucknow, 14 May (HS): Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath described food

adulteration and fake drug industry as a’social crime’ and stated that it is a

severe public health concern. Any concession on this will be inexcusable. He

urged officials to take stern and decisive action against adulterators, a phony

drug business network, and those participating in this crime in accordance with

the state government’s ‘zero tolerance’ policy. The Chief Minister stated that

such individuals should be named publicly and their images displayed at

significant crossroads.

In a high-level review meeting of the Food Safety and Drug

Administration (FSDA) department on Wednesday, the Chief Minister directed that

the daily consumption items like oil, ghee, spices, milk, cheese should be tested

at the manufacturing unit itself as far as possible. Dedicated teams should be

formed for intensive testing of milk and milk products which should be monitored

continuously. Along with this, effective control should also be established by

identifying professional blood donors. He clarified that the health of the

common people is the top priority of the state government and this

responsibility should be discharged with complete transparency and commitment.

The Chief Minister was informed that the network of food and

drug laboratories in the state has expanded rapidly. Apart from the six major

divisions functioning earlier, new laboratories and offices have now been

established in Aligarh, Ayodhya, Azamgarh, Bareilly, Basti, Chitrakoot, Kanpur,

Mirzapur, Moradabad, Prayagraj, Saharanpur and Devipatan divisions. Laboratory

buildings have been upgraded in Lucknow, Gorakhpur and Jhansi. Along with this,

three modern microbiology laboratories have also been established in Lucknow,

Meerut and Varanasi, in which testing of microorganisms, protozoa, viruses,

bacteria, microtoxins and other disease-causing organisms has become possible.

Testing has also started in Lucknow and Meerut. The Chief Minister suggested

setting up a ‘corpus fund’ for the operation and maintenance of these

laboratories.

For effective control over the business of counterfeit

medicines, the Chief Minister directed that departmental coordination with the

police should be further improved so that the quality and effectiveness of

enforcement actions can be ensured. The actions being taken to ensure the

quality of medicines were also reviewed in the meeting.

A password-protected barcode system has been implemented by FSDA

with the aim of making the food safety process transparent and accountable.

This ensures confidentiality and objectivity of the analysis of samples. Each

sample is tested digitally by scientists and the analysis is considered valid

only after the approval of higher officials.

To ensure the participation of common citizens, the department

has provided a mobile app called ‘Food Safety Connect’ and toll free number

1800-180-5533. The Chief Minister directed that the settlement of any complaint

should be considered valid only when the complainant is satisfied.

There has been a significant progress in terms of investment and

employment generation in the field of medical equipment and drug manufacturing.

The Chief Minister was apprised that investment proposals worth Rs 1,470 crore

have been approved in the last three years. This has provided direct employment

to more than 3,340 people. An unprecedented increase has been registered in the

number of drug manufacturing units, medical device manufacturing, blood banks

and retail drug sellers. More than 65,000 new jobs have been created in retail

drug establishments alone in the last three years. The Chief Minister directed

that the organizational capacity of FSDA should be strengthened and for this

the recruitment process should be started soon for the vacant posts.

Hindusthan Samachar / Abhishek Awasthi