Zee Media Bureau
Ranchi: Jharkhand government will take a call on Maggi noodles issue on Thursday amid reports of several states sending samples of the noodles for testing.
The Jharkhand Health Minister Ramchandra Chandravanshi had said yesterday that his department would take a call on the controversial matter but had not elaborated much on it.
"We will take a decision tomorrow," Chandravanshi had told PTI over phone from Bhubaneswar.
The minister had made the statement in the wake of several states having sent samples of the noodles to check the reported high levels of lead and mono-sodium glutamate.
Meanwhile, yesterday in further troubles for Nestle over Maggi issue, the government had filed a complaint on its own with the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) - using a provision for the first time from the nearly three-decade-old Consumer Protection Act.
Describing the alleged lapses related to food safety standards in Maggi noodles as a "serious issue", Food and Consumer Affairs Minister Ram Vilas Paswan had said that the NCDRC will investigate the matter and take appropriate action.
Usually, NCDRC comes into play following complaints filed by a consumer, but a section of this Act of 1986 also provides for the government to register a complaint.
"For the first time, we are taking action under Section 12-1-D of the Consumer Protection Act, under which both Centre and states have powers to file complaints," Paswan had said.
This particular section deals with the manner in which a complaint can be made before NCDRC.
While the government has already asked central food safety regulator FSSAI to look into the matter, it had earlier said that NCDRC would look into this issue if a complaint is filed.
"Since there would be delay in getting FSSAI (Food Safety and Standards Authority of India) reports and since it is concerned about consumers, we decided to file a written complaint before NCDRC in the interest of consumers," Paswan had told reporters.
FSSAI, which comes under the Health Ministry, has taken samples of Maggi noodles from all states for testing.
The 'two-minute' instant food brand has been in the middle of a storm for alleged presence of lead and taste enhancer monosodium glutamate (MSG) beyond permissible limits.
(With PTI inputs)
