The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has severely criticised the implementation of the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act (PFA) by state governments stating that the ''very objective and the purpose to eliminate the danger to human life had not been achieved.'' Monitoring of the implementation of the act was ''woefully inadequate'' at both central and state levels,'' the CAG said in a report tabled in Parliament on Tuesday.
Procedures for monitoring and evaluation were not set up in some states and the state level advisory committees in some states remained non-functional. Despite 46 years of enactment of the act, no management information system has been developed to monitor the implementation of the act, it said.
Though prosecution of traders found selling adulterated food articles is a big deterrent to check food adulteration, ''prosecution was not initiated in about one-third of the cases and even in those cases where prosecution was initiated, about 50 per cent ended in acquittal,'' CAG said.
This was mainly due to inability of the state governments to defend the case properly, non-maintenance of basic records and non-appointment of food analysts, it said adding that the objectives of creating consumer awareness and imparting training to various functionaries remained unachieved. Bureau Report