Union Health Ministry, FSSAI 'fail to respond' to NHRC directive on packaged food

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has expressed deep concern over the adverse health effects caused by packaged foods high in salt, sugar, and saturated fats. Recognizing it as a violation of the Right to Life and Right to Health of Indian citizens, the quasi-judicial body called for a response from the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) regarding its selection of front-of-pack labels aimed at providing consumers with information to make healthier choices.
Established in 1993 with the purpose of safeguarding human rights in the country, the NHRC issued the directive in response to a complaint filed on September 14, 2021, by Shruti Nagvanshi and Shirin Shabana Khan on behalf of the Peoples' Vigilance Committee on Human Rights (PVCHR) and the Savitri Bai Phule Mahila Panchayat of Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh.
The Commission issued its first notice on October 11, 2021, to the Secretary, Health & Family Welfare, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, followed by February 9, 2022 directive to the Chief Executive Officer, FSSAI. On September 20, 2022 FSSAI introduced the Front of Pack Labelling (FOPL) draft regulation, which was subsequently opened for public comment.
Shruti Nagvanshi, co-complainant and Convenor of the Savitri Bai Phule Mahila Panchayat, remarked, "Indians are witnessing a sharp rise in premature deaths and morbidity due to Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) such as diabetes, obesity, cancers, and cardiovascular diseases. These ailments are affecting the youth and children, sometimes as early as 5 years of age."
According to her, "Packaged food products with high levels of sugar, salt, or fats are a primary cause of this crisis. Unable to tolerate the harm being inflicted on consumers unknowingly, we approached the NHRC to assert that consumers have the right to know what's in their food."
She added, "A clear warning on FOPL is the only way to protect our children and people from catastrophic health consequences. While FSSAI has introduced a draft regulation and proposed a certain type of FOPL, it is not the best choice for the people. We need a clear warning and not a misleading star-based rating system."

In a rare move, NHRC decided to constitute a full commission for this matter. According to Dr Lenin Raghuvanshi, Founder and Convenor of PVCHR, "In the interest of public health, it would be appropriate for FSSAI to abandon the idea of a star rating. An alert or warning label is the need of the hour."

He added, "For over two years now, members of the PIPAL (People's Initiative for Participatory Action on Food Labeling) network have been advocating for the protection of a child's right to healthy food and a healthy life. This is a significant moment for this movement, and we hope that FSSAI pays heed."
Dr Yuvraj Singh, commenting on FSSAI's proposed India Nutrition Rating (INR), stated, "The notion that unhealthy food can become healthy simply by adding fruits or nuts is erroneous and lacks scientific basis. The assignment of stars is based on a complex scoring system that values positive factors such as the inclusion of fruit or nuts. This 'star rating' may mask many of the detrimental effects of these products and convey a misleading message to the public."
Expressing confidence in the full commission, Shirin Shabana Khan, Program Director of PVCHR, said, "There is enough evidence from India, including a study conducted by the All India Institutes of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS), and leading nutritionists like Dr Chandrakant Pandav, that warning labels work best. Countries worldwide are adopting warning labels to protect their people. We should adhere to what is right and scientific."
Shruti Nagvanshi emphasized that the journey has not been easy, with NHRC issuing reminders and notices to the Ministry of Health and FSSAI that received no responses.

Comments

Dalit rights and political tensions: Why is Mevani at odds with Congress leadership?

While I have known Jignesh Mevani, one of the dozen-odd Congress MLAs from Gujarat, ever since my Gandhinagar days—when he was a young activist aligned with well-known human rights lawyer Mukul Sinha’s organisation, Jan Sangharsh Manch—he became famous following the July 2016 Una Dalit atrocity, in which seven members of a family were brutally assaulted by self-proclaimed cow vigilantes while skinning a dead cow, a traditional occupation among Dalits.

Global NGO slams India for media clampdown during conflict, downplays Pakistan

A global civil rights group, Civicus has taken strong exception to how critical commentaries during the “recent conflict” with Pakistan were censored in India, with journalists getting “targeted”. I have no quarrel with the Civicus view, as the facts mentioned in it are all true.

Whither SCOPE? Twelve years on, Gujarat’s official English remains frozen in time

While writing my previous blog on how and why Narendra Modi went out of his way to promote English when he was Gujarat chief minister — despite opposition from people in the Sangh Parivar — I came across an interesting write-up by Aakar Patel, a well-known name among journalists and civil society circles.

Remembering Vijay Rupani: A quiet BJP leader who listened beyond party lines

Late evening on June 12, a senior sociologist of Indian origin, who lives in Vienna, asked me a pointed question: Of the 241 persons who died as a result of the devastating plane crash in Ahmedabad the other day, did I know anyone? I had no hesitation in telling her: former Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani, whom I described to her as "one of the more sensible persons in the BJP leadership."

Unchecked urbanisation, waste dumping: Study warns of 'invited disaster' as khadi floods threaten half of Surat

An action research report, “Invited Disaster: Khadi Floods in Surat City”, published by two civil rights groups, Paryavaran Suraksha Samiti and the People's Union for Civil Liberties, Surat, states that nearly half of Gujarat's top urban conglomerate—known for its concentration of textile and diamond polishing industries—is affected by the dumping of debris and solid waste, along with the release of treated and untreated sewage into the khadis (rivulets), thereby increasing the risk of flood disaster.

Polymath academy or echo chamber? A personal take on knowledge, control, and WhatsApp moderation

A few months back, I was made a member of a WhatsApp group called Polymath Academy. Frankly, I didn’t know what the word polymath meant until its administrator, veteran Gujarat-based sociologist Vidyut Joshi — with whom I have been interacting since the mid-1990s when he was with the Gandhi Labour Institute — told me it refers to a person with an exceptional academic record.

Two decades on, hunger still haunts Gujarat: Survey exposes stark gap behind poverty claims

A Niti Aayog report , released about two years ago, estimated that in Gujarat — which our powers-that-be have long considered a model state — 11.66% of people are "multidimensionally poor," a term referring to an index that seeks to estimate "multiple and simultaneous deprivations" at the household level across three macro categories: health, education, and living standards.

English proficiency for empowerment: Modi’s SCOPE vision contrasts Amit Shah’s remark

While Union Home Minister Amit Shah may have asserted that soon a time would come when those speaking English in the country would “feel ashamed”, it is ironic that Narendra Modi, when he was Gujarat chief minister, had launched what was called the SCOPE programme, actively involving the University of Cambridge to provide opportunities to the youth of Gujarat to "become not just job seekers but job creators (entrepreneurs)."

Whither whistleblower concerns? Air India crash: Govt of India report suggests human error

Is the Ministry of Civil Aviation, Government of India, seeking to bail out Boeing in its preliminary report released recently despite the top MNC's whistleblower concerns ? It would seem so, if the Ministry's Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau's (AAIB's) preliminary findings into the catastrophic crash of Air India’s Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, registration VT-ANB, which went down shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad on 12 June 2025, killing all 241 on board and 19 on the ground, is any indication.

Search This Blog