New Delhi [India], June 7 (HornbillTV): In an effort to galvanize States/UTs to work towards ensuring safe food for citizens, Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare Mansukh Mandaviya released the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India’s (FSSAI) 4th State Food Safety Index (SFSI) to measure the performance of States across five parameters of food safety, said Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Tuesday.

SFSI was started in 2018-19 with the aim of creating a competitive and positive change in the food safety ecosystem in the country. The index will help in providing safe and nutritious food to our citizens, added the press release.

Speaking on the occasion of World Food Safety Day, Mandaviya thanked all the stakeholders and said that such awards help in recognising the efforts taken by people, said a statement.

Mandaviya emphasized that Nation and nutrition are deeply connected and for a Samruddh Bharat, we need a Swasthya Bharat and for a Swasthya Bharat, we need Swasthya Nagrik. He highlighted that in the last few years, healthcare has also seen holistic development in the country.

Mandaviya further added that the government is dedicated to ensuring health security for every citizen in the country and for this it is focussing on primary, secondary and tertiary healthcare fronts with various initiatives like Health and Wellness Centres and strengthening of district hospitals under the National Health Mission.

He praised the crucial role FSSAI plays in ensuring healthy and nutritious food to the citizens of our country. “It is important to note that states have an important role in ensuring food safety and healthy food practices. It is the need of the hour that we come together to ensure a healthy nation”, he further noted.

The Union Health Minister felicitated the winning State/UTs based on the ranking for the years 2021-22 for their impressive performance across parameters. This year, among the larger states, Tamil Nadu was the top-ranking state, followed by Gujarat and Maharashtra. Among the smaller states, Goa stood first followed by Manipur and Sikkim.

Among UTs, Jammu & Kashmir, Delhi and Chandigarh secured first, second and third ranks. Mandaviya also felicitated states which showed significant improvement in the State Food Safety Index.