No chemist shop, rice-miller, flour mill or transporters who supply food items, have applied either for registration or license with the health department, even as the deadline for doing so under the Food Safety and Standard Act (FSA) has been fixed at February 4.
The department plans to launch a campaign from the next week to create awareness on the act. It has also announced that firms and businesses not registered or licenced under the act would be fined heavily.

The department has set a target of issuing 7,000 registrations and 800 licences; but it has issued only 805 registrations and 90 licences so far, 17 months after the act was notified. 

Speaking with HT, district health officer Dr Garja Singh said that the department will start an awareness campaign from Monday. He added that chemists, rice-millers, flour mills, transporters, bakery and all those who deal with food items need to be registered under Food Safety and Standard Act, 2006.

He said that chemists also sell certain categories of eatables and need to apply under this Act. He added that the government also planned to bring alcohol dealers under the Act, but as of now alcohol dealers had been kept out of this act.