The health minister of India, Shri Mansukh Mandaviya on Tuesday stated that through the National Health Mission the government is committed to accomplishing health security for all residents and that district hospitals are being reinforced to provide improved healthcare facilities. He emphasized the need for states in maintaining food safety and healthy eating habits.

On the occasion of World Food Safety Day, the health minister stated that the health sector has seen holistic development and that the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has launched the 4th State Food Safety Index (SFSI) to measure the overall performance of states throughout 5 parameters of food safety.

Initiatives such as health and wellness centres and strengthening of district hospitals were being taken up by the government to strengthen the primary, secondary and tertiary healthcare fronts. He thanked FSSAI for its crucial role in offering and assuring healthy and nutritious food to the country′s people.

For the year 2021-22, the health minister congratulated and awarded the winning state, Tamil Nadu, followed by Gujarat and Maharashtra, for their outstanding performance across all metrics. He also congratulated states which improved their State Food Safety Index. He launched FSSAI′s Eat Right Research Awards and Grants - Phase II, among other creative ideas. Phase III of the Eat Right Creativity Challenge, a school competition and logo for Ayurveda Aahar is made out of the letters Ayurveda and Ahara, with five leaves representing the five elements of nature.

Furthermore, Union Health Secretary Shri Rajesh Bhushan stated that a complex and multi-stakeholder approach is essential to prevent the burden of food-borne diseases and to maintain food safety, and that awareness must be developed at all levels of society.

The food testing paradigm in the country is being upgraded in mission mode, according to Shri Arun Singhal, FSSAI′s Chief Executive Officer, and a memorandum of understanding has been linked with states/UTs to closely monitor food safety implementation in their respective areas. (ETHealthWorld, June 08, 2022)