The Food Safety Department, Uttarakhand has provided the facility of testing of food items for better health to the devotees and local citizens coming on Chardham Yatra. The department’s mobile lab reached Rishikesh on Wednesday. This facility was made available for the citizens in the Chardham Yatra bus stand complex. This facility of this mobile lab will be available on the travel route during the entire travel period.
Deputy Commissioner Lab Rudrapur RS Rawat said that the food analyst working in the mobile lab tested about 60 food samples through surveillance on the spot. A total of 27 surveillance samples of milk and milk products, 14 of spices and 19 of other food items are included. In the preliminary investigation, all the samples of milk and milk products were found to be correct according to the standards, but adulteration of starch and artificial colors was found in three samples each of spices and sweets.
District Food Safety Officer Dehradun PC Joshi said that a mobile lab is being operated by the FDA to check the quality of food items on the Chardham Yatra route. In which any food trader and consumer can check the quality of food items of daily use by paying the fee fixed by the department at Rs.50.
Due to which the examiner will know whether the quality of food items is in accordance with the food safety standard or not. The service of this mobile lab will be available on the travel route of district Tehri Garhwal on Thursday. During this Senior Food Safety Officer Rishikesh Sanjay Tiwari, Dehradun Yogendra Pandey were also present.
