PANAJI
The Legal Metrology Department in a massive statewide drive has seized 3,096 rice bags weighing 25 kg and worth Rs 50 lakh for not having mandated labels on bags like manufacturer/packer name, the month of manufacturing or pre-packing, in violation of the provision of the Legal Metrology Act, 2009, and Legal Metrology (Packaged Commodities) Rules, 2011.
As per the Legal Metrology Act 2009, it is mandated to have a declaration on packaged bags about the MRP, Batch No, Manufacturer, etc.
The team lead by Assitant Controller Nitin Purushan, Demu Mapari, Gulam Gulburg, Vikas Kandolkar, Sudhir Gaonkar, Devanand Phadte, Nitesh Navelkar, Pascoal Vaz, Melwin Furtado booked these cases.
One case was booked at the stockist located at Ponda where 150 packages of rice bags worth Rs 2.5 lakh kept for distribution were seized. The date of packaging on the said packages was smudged and altered.
Two cases were booked at the stockist located at Zuarinagar Goa. Here 1,950 bags (25 kgs) of different brands worth Rs 32 lakh were seized.
These bags did not have a mandatory manufacturer/packer name, the month of manufacturing, or pre-packing.
One case was booked at the stockiest located at Maulinguem, Bicholim. 500 bags of 25 kg containing rice worth Rs 7.5 lakh were seized.
One case was booked at a stockist located at Corlim-Goa. Around 496 bags of 25 kgs worth Rs 8 lakh were seized.
The legal metrology department has appealed to the people to check the declaration and expiry twice before buying rice packages.
