Tuesday, 11 JUNE 2024 | PNS | DEHRADUN
The Suddhowala jail and the secretariat complex in Dehradun are soon expected to get the certification of the ‘Eat Right Campus’ by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). If the Suddhowala jail gets the certification, it will be Uttarakhand’s first ‘Eat Right Jail Campus’, the deputy commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) GC Kandwal said. He said that this initiative falls under FSSAI’s Eat Right India movement and aims to promote safe, healthy and sustainable food in different workplaces and institutions including jails. The FSSAI emphasises its commitment to ensuring access to safe and nutritious food for all, including inmates and prison staff through this initiative. He said that this initiative plays a crucial role in creating a sense of responsibility and accountability towards food safety and nutrition within the prison system. Informing about the process, Kandwal said that the campus of any establishment can enter this programme. The participant campuses undergo comprehensive audits to ensure compliance with four key parameters which include basic hygiene criteria and steps to ensure the provision of healthy food and efforts towards building awareness about local and seasonal food. Once enrolled in this programme, a campus first undergoes a self-assessment or a third-party audit by an FSSAI empanelled agency based on this checklist to identify gaps and areas of improvement. The campus administration then takes steps to address these gaps. He said that a critical step of this process includes training of Food Safety Supervisors and food handlers on the campus through FSSAI’s Food Safety Training and Certification (FoSTaC) Programme. The FoSTaC is designed to impart training to food handlers on good hygiene and manufacturing practices. Recently, 30 food handlers of the Secretariat also received similar training last week. Kandwal said that Suddhowala jail and secretariat complex are yet to undergo a few more audits and after getting clearance, the FSSAI will declare both Eat Right Campuses. He also informed that the FDA will also soon include AIIMS Rishikesh and Indian Military Academy (IMA) Dehradun under the Eat Right Campus campaign. The department has started initial preparations for the participation of both institutions, Kandwal said.
