BHUBANESWAR : Odisha ranked eight among large states in ensuring food safety in 2021-22. The State had ranked 4th in the Index in 2020-21.The State had presented an impressive performance by elevating itself to rank fourth from number 13 in 2019-20, but it failed to improve or retain its position this time.The State secured 54.5 points out of a total 100 in the fourth edition of the State Food Safety Index (SFSI) released by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), which gave the ratings on five parameters prescribed by the Health Ministry, awarded 10.5 points to the State in Human Resources and Institutional data, 11 points in compliance, 15 points in Food testing infrastructure and surveillance, 7 points in training and capacity building and 11 in consumer empowerment.
The SFSI measures the performance of the states in ensuring food safety and healthy food practices through these parameters. The State’s poor performance this time can be attributed to the large scale adulteration of food items and poor hygiene conditions, exposed by the food safety officials in a series of crackdown in different parts of the State, especially Cuttack and Bhubaneswar in the last one year.
Food safety officials had found a number of adulterated food items, substandard food and beverages and contaminated substances during their raids at different fast food joints, hotels and markets in the twin cities.
Popular street food hub of the Capital City, ‘Khao Gali’ had also been shut down by the civic authorities for two weeks last month over poor hygiene and violation of other norms. The SFSI ranking has been done in three categories, large states, small states and Union territories.Tamil Nadu topped the Index among 17 large states this year with 82 points, followed by Gujarat and Maharashtra with 77.5 and 70 points respectively. Goa stood first among small states, while Jammu and Kashmir bagged first position among the Union Territories.