CANACONA: Cracking a whip on fish importers, the Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) on Friday sent back four trucks carrying fish which had reached Margao wholesale fish market. Another four were sent back from Polem check post for not complying with the order issued by the FDA.
In a note issued by FDA, the police at Polem and Pernem were alerted about some fish traders who transported seafood into Goa through insulated trucks holding a transport licence, however do not carry proper challans mentioning the name of consignee or by whom it is imported. The note also mentioned that till Friday no trader has obtained the wholesale licence for trading in fish from FDA.
Sources informed that an enforcement team led by Food Safety Officers (FSO) Abel Rodrigues and Madhav Kawlekar who were on duty at Polem Checkpost on the intervening night of Thursday and Friday intercepted four trucks carrying fish. They were denied entry for improper documentation.
However, a truck carrying fish to a fish processing factory at Cuncolim and another proceeding to Ratnagiri were allowed to travel, said a source at Canacona police station.
As the FDA note was received on Friday, four trucks had already arrived at Margao wholesale fish market from Polem checkpost. However, upon learning that the consignees had no wholesale fish trade license, all of these four trucks were sent back by the FDA team comprising of FSOs Shivdas Naik, Rajaram Patil and Atul Desai.
It may be recalled that through an order issued on August 2, the FDA imposed conditions for fish imports into the State. It made mandatory for fish traders from Goa dealing with import of fish to obtain licence under Food Safety and Standards Act 2006 also it made mandatory for seafood traders from outside Goa involved in transporting fish to Goa to have licence from their home state FDA or FDA of Goa provided the fish is transported in insulated vehicles.
