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GOVERNMENTOFINDIA
MINISTRYOFHEALTH AND FAMILYWELFARE
DEPARTMENTOFHEALTH AND FAMILYWELFARE
RAJYASABHA
UNSTARREDQUESTION NO. 3652
TO BE ANSWERED ON24th MARCH, 2026
ADULTERATION OFCONSUMER ITEMS
3652. SHRI PRAMOD TIWARI:
Will the Ministerof HEALTHANDFAMILYWELFAREbe pleasedtostate:
(a)whether uncheckedsale of adulterated consumer itemsisrampantalloverthe country;
(b) if so, the steps takentocurbthe menace of adulteratedconsumer itemsincluding
improvingthe monitoringmechanism by strengthening the capacityof the enforcement
machinery;
(c)whether there isshortage of manpower within FoodSafetyandStandardsAuthority of
India; and
(d) if so, the steps takeninthisregard?
ANSWER
THEMINISTEROFSTATEINTHEMINISTRYOFHEALTHANDFAMILY
WELFARE
(SHRIPRATAPRAOJADHAV)
(a) to (d): Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) is mandated to lay down
science based standards for articles of food and to regulate their manufacture, storage,
distribution, sale and import to ensure availability of safe and wholesome food for human
consumption. The implementation and enforcement of the Food Safety and Standards (FSS)
Act, 2006isa shared responsibility between the Central andStateGovernments.
Surveillance drives, monitoring, regulatory inspection and random sampling of various
food products are conducted throughout the year by the officials of Food Safety Departments
of the respective States/ UTs and Regional offices of FSSAI to check compliance with the
quality andsafety parameters infood productsaslaid down under Food Safetyand Standards
Act, 2006, and Regulations made thereunder. If any violations are observed, strict regulatory
actions have been enforced against the offenders in accordance with the provisions of FSS
Act. Detailsof numberof FoodSamples tested for last 5 Yearsare asfollows:Year No. of SamplesAnalysed No. of Samplesfound non-conforming
2024-25 1,70,535 34,388
2023-24 1,70,513 33,808
2022-23 1,77,511 44,626
2021-22 1,44,345 32,934
2020-21 1,07,829 28,347
FSSAI has developed Risk Based Inspection System (RBIS) where frequency of
inspection is decided based on risk associated with Food businesses and issued guidelines
including the Annual inspections for all food categories identified as high risk. In last three
yearsFSSAIconducted a totalof 56,269 Risk Based Inspections.
FSSAI has established a network of food testing laboratories across India for the
analysis of food to ensure the compliance with the quality and safety standards. As on date,
there are 252 National Accreditation Board for Testing andCalibration Laboratories (NABL)
notified for analysis of food samples and 24 Referral Food Laboratories for the analysis of
appellatesamples.
To strengthen the food testing infrastructure in States & UTs, FSSAI has provided
technical & financial assistance to the States/UTs under the scheme - “Strengthening of Food
Testing System in the Country Including provision of Mobile Food Testing Labs'' (SoFTeL).
Under the Scheme, 47 State food testing laboratories have been upgraded & 34 microbiology
labs have been set up in the area of food safety & quality parameters. To bridge the gap in
testing capabilities and extend outreach for on-the-spot food testing in the remote areas,
where the laboratory infrastructures are lacking, State/UTs have deployed Mobile Food
Testing Laboratories (MFTLs). So far, 305 MFTLs have been procured & deployed by
States/UTs against the funds providedby FSSAIfor 541MFTLs.
As on 01.01.2026, 320 posts were vacant against the sanctioned strength of 822 in
FSSAI. In the States/UTs, 2997 Food Safety Officers are working against 4208 sanctioned
posts and668Designated Officers are working against 718sanctionedposts.
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