Spitting in food? Yogi govt's proposed law could send you to jail in Uttar Pradesh
The Yogi Adityanath government is planning to introduce legislation to punish those who contaminate food with human waste or other harmful substances. This comes after several incidents across the state and aims to ensure food safety and maintain public trust.
Following many incidents of food sellers or street vendors spitting on food products around the state, the Yogi Adityanath government plans to enact legislation to punish people who contaminate food with human excrement. In the past, such incidents have also led to conflicts within the community. The chief minister stated at a review meeting on Tuesday that serving tainted food tainted with human waste or dirt will be a crime and that a tougher law is imminent. He claimed that as customers need complete openness from food and beverage vendors, a strong law is necessary to guarantee food purity and preserve consumer confidence.
The chief minister reiterated that all employees should wear identity cards while on duty and that vendors should be obliged to post signs at their businesses. Those who use pseudonyms or give misleading information ought to face harsh consequences.
According to the state administration, a new law is being developed to stop food and drink adulteration by concealing names. Violators will face jail time and a fine. Adityanath instructed officials to "take strict action against intruders and illegal foreign workers in food establishments."
A draft law to stop food adulteration with dirt and inedible ingredients has been evaluated by the chief minister. "At the meeting, Adityanath emphasized the necessity of strict measures to address recent food contamination incidents involving items such as roti, dal, and juice being contaminated with harmful substances and human waste," the state administration said in a statement.
Food products such as juice, dal, and roti have been adulterated with human feces or other unfit or dirty materials in a number of locations around the nation in recent years. These horrible deeds jeopardize societal cohesion in addition to public health. The chief minister declared that such malevolent actions are completely intolerable and that prompt response is required.
Strict regulations are necessary to protect food purity and preserve consumer trust in public order. Activities including hotels, restaurants, dhabas, and street sellers need to be governed by clear laws. In order to guarantee prompt and decisive action, the government said that violators should be subject to both fines and jail, with such offenses being considered cognizable and non-bailable.
By hiding their identities, antisocial individuals will be prohibited from tampering food and beverages with inedible or unclean substances or human waste. The CM stated that "such malevolent activities must be strictly curbed."
Every customer must have the ability to obtain vital information on food and beverage vendors and service providers, according to the government. In order to guarantee this, all employees should be compelled to wear identity cards while on duty, and vendors should be obliged to post signboards at their businesses. The government stated that anyone who use pseudonyms or give misleading information should face harsh consequences.
“Every food establishment must guarantee that its food is free from contamination. It should be mandatory to install an adequate number of CCTV cameras for continuous monitoring in both the kitchen and dining areas. Footage from these cameras should be retained for at least one month and made available upon request by the district administration at any time,” the government said.
All kitchen employees will be required to wear gloves, masks, and head coverings when making and serving food at the facility. Operators of food businesses are required to provide the information of every employee in their company to the appropriate authority.