Experts have expressed their concern over increasing use of toxic chemicals and adulterants in foods, beverages and confectionaries, which they say is the main cause of serious diseases and affect mental health of people in Jammu and Kashmir.
According to a statement, a number of food experts and some concerned citizens while speaking on a seminar, “Adulteration and Toxic Chemicals in Food and Milk’ organised by an NGO ‘We the Humans Forum’ in collaboration with Department of Environmental Science of Government Women’s College, Srinagar said the enforcement authorities neither have the infrastructure nor will to stop this menace in the state.
They asked the Food Safety Organisation and Legal Metrology Departments to launch a vigorous campaign against adulteration and use of toxic chemicals in foods and milk “otherwise happening of cancer related diseases in people will spread like an epidemic in coming years”.
Earlier in the seminar, S Prem Singh, organiser of the event, informed that ‘We The Human’ has been organising awareness camps in schools, colleges on different serious environmental issues as well as holds free multi speciality medical check up camps in far flung and remote areas of J&K.
Vice Chairman of the We The Humans KYS Manhas, Food Technologist, SKUAST-K, Harun Naik, Lalit Sharma, Retd Adl PCCF and Prof Sumaira Shafi HoD Environmental Science GCW M A Road during the seminar. Besides, a number of PHD scholars and college students presented their papers during the seminar.
Chief Guest of the program S Baldev Singh CMD Peaks Autos appreciated efforts being put in by “We The Human” in organising awareness programs on serious environmental issues and asked students to make use of social media apps like Facebook, Twitter and WhatsApp to highlight serious environmental issues around them.
Naseer Ahmad Khan, MD Meridian Group of Hotels, Environmentalist Rouf Ahmad, Environmentalists Mohinder Kumar, Mushtaq Shah, Gohar Wani, Ghulam Hassan, Mushtaq Mir were among other dignitaries present on the occasion. Mementoes and awards were distributed among students and dignitaries.