MADURAI: Inspection teams of the Food Safety Department in Madurai district are working in full swing carrying out raids and taking action on shops that are found to be selling banned tobacco products such as ‘Gutka’ pan masala etc.
“With the support of local police, our food safety teams have intensified the raids and surprise checks. In the last one year, we conducted inspection and searches at 30,441 shops, seized 4,140 kg of Gutka etc, 844 shops were closed and a fine of Rs.1.44 crore was imposed on them for indulging in selling of banned tobacco products,” Dr.V.Jeyaramapandian, Designated Officer for Food Safety, Madurai district, told ‘Lotus Times’ media here yesterday- November 25th 2024.
STRICT ACTION AND IMMEDIATE PENALTY:
The Food Safety teams are not only doing surprise checks but also quick action being taken against the erring shopkeepers in Madurai district.
“We take action in different methods. If we find shops for the first time selling tobacco products, the fine is Rs.25,000 and those shops are closed for 15 days, and after that the fine and further action goes up for second time. From November last year, we are putting more focus on seizing Gutka and other banned tobacco products because our aim is to protect the students and youth. Our Food Safety teams also seized 401 kgs of ‘Cool Lip’. We destroy them after the seizure and random checks are done in city and rural areas,” Dr.V.Jeyaramapandian informed.
He also said that shops found guilty are being sealed and strict measures being initiated by way of notice, penalty, closure etc. “The Food Safety wing in Madurai district is right now going in full swing thanks to the 16 Food Safety Officers (FSOs) and police. Because of that, we could impose a penalty of Rs.1,43,65,000/- to be precise on shops selling banned tobacco products,” he added.
