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The Supreme Court on Friday refused to examine a plea seeking regulations over the quality of "prasad" or food offerings being distributed at temples, observing its prayers were within the state's domain. A bench of Justices B R Gavai and K V Viswanathan told the petitioner's counsel that Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 26 said the executive was discharging its function within its limits. "We are not inclined to entertain the present petition in as much as the prayers made in the petition are within the domain of policy of the state," the bench noted, "if the petitioner so desires, he may make an application to the appropriate authority which would be considered in accordance with law". The petitioner's counsel asserted that the PIL did not seek publicity while referring to news reports over people falling ill after the consumption of food offerings or "prasad" at various temples. "Why only restricting it to prasadam? File it for food in hotels, food items that we purchase
Minister of State for Food Processing Industries Ravneet Singh Bittu on Wednesday stressed the need for harsh penalties and cracking down heavily on the nexus of people engaged in illicit trade and activities. Addressing the 10th edition of FICCI-CASCADE's - MASCRADE 2024', Bittu said that coordination between various enforcement agencies is key to overcoming the battle against the nefarious elements ruining economic growth. "Together, we build resilient economies, fostering global collaboration to combat these threats with robust initiatives...punishment is necessary, and it is important to instill fear in the minds of perpetrators that harsh penalties are in store for them if they engage in illicit trade activities, he added. Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) member Rajiv Talwar said the board is serving as the fulcrum in the movement against counterfeit goods and smuggling. "We have built a technology-driven risk management portal with very wide capabilities tha
On-demand convenience platform Swiggy on Wednesday said it has not hiked its platform fee and no plans for a significant increase in the near term. The company, which currently charges Rs 5 as a platform fee to customers, clarified it had 'teased' to a "very small set of users" of Rs 10 as an experiment but was never implemented. "Swiggy has not changed its platform fee, and has no plans for a significant increase in the near term," a Swiggy Spokesperson said in a response to a query on the report of the company hiking its platform fee. Further, the spokesperson said, "We're always running small experiments to better understand the consumer's choices. This was one such experiment, and we may or may not scale it up in the future if it doesn't meet our goal of serving our users in the best way possible." Swiggy is always looking for ways to make its platform more affordable, and the latest offering, Pockethero, is another example of that, according to the company. "Pockethero is ...
India figures among the few countries that have been able to evolve their food systems for a broader set of outcomes by unlocking the potential of small and medium-sized enterprises, a new WEF report said on Monday. The World Economic Forum report, released here on the first day or its Annual Meeting 2023, said the countries that tackle food crisis can boost jobs, health and nature and also meet net zero goals better. It listed India, Ghana and Vietnam as among the countries that have been able to evolve their food systems by unlocking the potential of SMEs, particularly those that are farmer-allied and operating in local food chains. Food systems, when transformed, can help solve some of the world's toughest problems, from climate change to resilient livelihoods, the report said. "Transforming food systems provide healthy and nutritious diets and dignified jobs for farmers and producers. This report shows how economic development with environment protection supports communities in