06 September,2026 06:46 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
Maharashtra FDA chief Tukaram Mundhe said the legal framework covering food safety, including the registration and licensing of FBOs, has been in place since 2011. File Pic
The Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has clarified that its recent directive on food safety during festivals and large public gatherings is aimed at preventing food adulteration and protecting public health, and does not seek to restrict religious or cultural celebrations, reported the PTI.
FDA Commissioner Tukaram Mundhe said the order is intended to ensure that food served during festivals is safe and complies with existing food safety laws.
"There appears to be some misunderstanding and apprehension regarding the standing order issued for food-safety arrangements during festivals and large public gatherings," Mundhe said, the news agency reported.
"We are not regulating festivals; we are ensuring that food served at festivals - just as in weddings, bhandaras, Eid, Christmas, New Year's Eve events and other gatherings - is safe and compliant with a law that has existed since 2011," he said.
Tukaram Mundhe stressed that the order does not regulate how festivals are celebrated.
The statement comes after the Maharashtra FDA introduced a year-round Festival Enforcement Calendar as part of its efforts to systematically check food adulteration during festivals.
Earlier, food safety directions were often issued separately ahead of individual festivals. The latest order creates a common framework covering festivals and large public gatherings throughout the year.
The aim is to ensure that FDA officials, food vendors, caterers, Food Business Operators (FBOs) and event organisers understand their respective responsibilities, Mundhe said, according to the PTI.
He added that the framework would reduce ambiguity, prevent arbitrary interpretation and ensure consistent enforcement of existing food safety laws.
Mundhe said the legal framework covering food safety, including the registration and licensing of FBOs, has been in place since 2011.
He clarified that the latest directive does not introduce a new law, create a new licensing regime or impose additional legal requirements specifically for festivals.
"The order does not regulate festivals. It regulates food safety," he said, as per the PTI.
The FDA commissioner also made it clear that the directive does not prohibit bhandaras, prasad or community food distribution.
It does not prevent people from organising Ganapati or other religious festivals, nor does it interfere with religious rituals and traditions, he said.
Mundhe described the SOP as religion-neutral and festival-neutral, stressing that it applies equally to all communities and gatherings.
"No religious or cultural activity is being prohibited by this order," he said.
Mundhe said the purpose of the directive was to ensure that food served during festivities is safe and complies with the existing food safety framework.
"It is a uniform, year-round SOP for implementing the existing food-safety framework, applicable without discrimination to all communities, all festivals and all food-service activities," he said.
"The objective is not to restrict celebration but to prevent illness. Let festivals be celebrated with faith, joy and tradition and let the food served during the festivities be safe," Mundhe added, the news agency reported.
(with PTI inputs)
