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Licensing authorities told to scrutinise Annual Returns for credibility of info
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Saturday, 19 July, 2025, 08 : 00 AM [IST]
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Ashwani Maindola, New Delhi
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The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has asked the ‘licensing authorities’ to scrutinise the Annual Returns submitted by the food businesses for ‘credibility of information’.
In an order addressed to the State Food Safety Commissioners and Directors of the Regional Offices, the FSSAI has stated that to verify the credibility of the information, all licensing authorities must scrutinise the Annual Returns submitted by eligible FBOs under their respective jurisdictions.
“Further, in case of detection of any discrepancies, inconsistencies, or false declarations upon scrutiny, necessary actions shall be initiated as per the provisions of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, and applicable regulations,” the order added.
On December 18, 2020, the FSSAI initiated the filing of Annual Returns for FY 2020-21 onwards exclusively through the online FoSCoS (Food Safety Compliance System) platform. Since then, the submission rate has significantly improved. These returns capture key information, including mandatory production details and currently non-mandatory compliance-related data.
Meanwhile, the food authority has issued an order in January 2024, which introduced the provision in FoSCoS for FBOs to revise/update the already submitted Annual Returns to rectify inadvertent mistakes.
According to Dr. Satyen Kumar Panda, Executive Director (Compliance Strategy), FSSAI, all FBOs eligible for filing Annual Returns are reminded that submission of accurate and complete information in the Annual Returns is mandatory.
“In cases where any correction or update is required, FBOs are advised to avail the revision/update facility at the earliest as per the timelines and fee structure prescribed in the said order (of January 8, 2024). It is further reiterated that furnishing false or misleading information shall attract penalty under Section 61 of the FSS Act, 2006; therefore, timely correction of errors is essential to avoid penal action,” said Dr. Panda.
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