Health Dept wings spar over building

Rajmeet Singh

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, September 23

The building of the Punjab Food and Drug Administration here has become a bone of contention between two wings of the Health Department.

The Finance Department’s diktat to government departments to vacate rented accommodation and shift to government buildings in Chandigarh and Mohali has brought the Department of Food and Drug Administration and the State Food Safety Appellate Tribunal head to head over the possession of accommodation in the building that also houses the Food and Drug Testing Lab of Haryana.

The presiding officer of the tribunal, GS Bakshi, had written to the Additional Chief Secretary, Health, complaining that the staff of the Deputy Director, Food and Drug Administration, had broken their locks and taken possession of the accommodation that had been allotted to them by the then Commissioner, Food and Drug Administration, Varun Roozam.

The tribunal’s presiding officer said they had been allotted the accommodation on the first floor of the building to set up their court room, office and staff room as they had to shift from private accommodation in Sector 39. The tribunal also functions as the State Transport Appellate Tribunal. After the Food and Drug Laboratory, Punjab, shifted its office to Kharar, the accommodation was allotted to the tribunal in July. However, before the tribunal could shift its office, the Food and Drug Administration passed orders to keep the allotment of accommodation in abeyance.

Additional Chief Secretary, Health, Satish Chandra said on receipt of the complaint by the presiding officer of the tribunal, the office of the Commissioner, Food and Drug Administration, had been asked to shift their offices to the new building at Kharar. Commissioner, Food and Drug Administration, KS Pannu said: “I have directed my staff to shift to the Kharar office. We are handing over the rooms after getting them renovated.”