- Minister says instructions have been issued to all district govts for strict implementation of laws for provision of quality food items to people
The Punjab government on Thursday gave additional powers to Punjab Food Authority (PFA) while dedicated courts will be established to hold hearings of substandard meat and hygiene-related cases.
The government has doubled fines and punishments according to the new ordinance. The courts are entitled to sentence culprits from one month to life imprisonment. The ordinance is capable of imposing fines ranging from Rs one million to Rs 3 million.
In case substandard food claims consumer’s life, the culprit will be fined Rs 2,000,000 to Rs 3,000,000 and can be jailed for as many as ten years to life. Any harm done to a consumer biologically will result in a fine of Rs 100,000 to Rs 1,000,000 and three-months to three-year imprisonment.
Moreover, selling unhygienic food that may not necessarily have caused any harm to the consumer can lead to one to six months in prison and a fine ranging from Rs 100,000 to Rs 1,000,000. If authorities catch a food supplier with an unsanitary environment, he can be sentenced to between three days to six-months imprisonment. The fine for that will be between Rs 30,000 to Rs 1,000,000.
According to the new law, trials for violations of PFA’s rules will be held in special courts.
The development has come in after authorities seized at least 80 Kilogram (Kg) of alleged pork in an operation near Lahore Railways Station on September 2. Separately, joint operations of police and Livestock and Dairy Development Department saw arrests of more than ten criminals and seizure of at least 1,800 Kg substandard meat in Lahore and Rawalpindi.
Meanwhile, Punjab Food Minister Bilal Yasin on Thursday vowed to ensure the provision of quality and hygienic food to people at all cost.
“Elements involved in selling unhygienic meat or adulterated milk deserve no leniency and will be brought to account,” he added.
Speaking to media along with Director Punjab Food Control Authority Ayesha Mumtaz at 90-Shahra-e-Quaid-e-Azam, he said that the provision of quality eatables to people at cheaper rates would prove to be a revolutionary step, which will not only promote positive approach but help production of world standard food items.
He said that the Punjab Food Authority had been granted additional powers, while special courts were being instituted to hold hearings for the substandard meat and hygienic-related issues that were found during PFA raids.
Bilal said on instructions of the Punjab chief minister, a crackdown on sellers of dead or unhygienic meat had been expedited and only on Thursday, he said, mounds of stale meat had been seized in various districts.
He said instructions had been issued to all district governments for strict implementation of laws for provision of quality food items to people.
Answering a question, the minister said that a laboratory test on a sample of the alleged pork meat, which was confiscated by the Punjab Food Authority near Railway Station, would be made public.
