Food adulteration tests in Haryana now cost just Rs 20. The state health department announced the move this week. Five mobile vans from FSSAI will run the checks. Preliminary results take 10 to 12 minutes. The vans will visit bus stands, schools, colleges and markets. They will also visit fairs and festivals. Such events have many temporary food stalls.
Food adulteration means adding cheap or harmful substances to food. It lowers quality and can harm health.
Dr Sumita Misra is Additional Chief Secretary, Health and Family Welfare Department, Haryana. She said the aim is to make checks “easy for common citizens.” The goal also includes awareness on food adulteration.
The vans let officers spot unsafe food faster, she added. They need not wait for a traditional laboratory. Residents can bring milk, spices, pulses or edible oil. Here is how it works:
- Find a van near a bus stand, market or school.
- Carry a sample of milk, spices, pulses or oil.
- Pay Rs 20 per sample.
- Collect the preliminary result in 10 to 12 minutes.
What officials will do:
- Officers can sample randomly and test on the spot.
- Suspicious or failed samples lead to action under set rules.
- Staff will explain nutrition labels, fortified food and safe storage.
The vans follow the FSSAI Food Safety on Wheels model. It combines testing with awareness drives and training for food businesses. The scheme also supports the Centre’s Eat Right India campaign. FSSAI says such vans can test ghee, milk, khoya, sweets, oil and spices on the spot.
Past figures show why food adulteration checks matter. In FY2017, 9.2% of Haryana samples were adulterated or misbranded. By FY2019, that share rose to 25.2%.
| Financial year (source: FSSAI, via The Tribune) | Failed samples |
|---|---|
| FY2017 | 9.2 |
| FY2018 | 18.4 |
| FY2019 | 25.2 |
Unsafe food can attract six months to six years in jail under the FSS Act. The fine ranges from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 5 lakh. Chandigarh already runs similar food adulteration checks. Its vans tested 4,939 samples in a year. Of these, 432 failed quality standards. That is 8.7%. However, a district wise schedule for Haryana’s vans has not been officially confirmed. Residents may check with district food safety offices.