 bill no 170 of  2015 the food safety and standards (amendment) bill, 2015 byshri arjun meghwal, mpa billfurther to amend the food safety and standards act, 2006be it enacted by parliament in the sixty-sixth year of the republic of india as follows:—1 (1) this act may be called the food safety and standards (amendment) act, 2015short title and commencement(2) it shall come into force on such date, as the central government may, by notificationin the official gazette, appoint34 of 2006    52 after section 19 of the food safety and standards act, 2006, the following sectionshall be inserted, namely:—insertion of new section 19a grading and marking for ripening"19a no person shall sell or offer for sale any fruit or vegetable unless it has been graded and marked for ripening by food laboratory according to such standards and in such manner as may be specified by the food authority" statement of objects and reasonsthe issue of artificial ripening of fruits and vegetables especially mangoes and banana has been raised from time to time in various parts of the country usually farmers harvest fruits prior to maturity with a view to get premium price or to transport them to remote destinations where they are ripened before retailing with aids like calcium carbide, ethylene gas and ethrel/ethephon the use of ethylene gas either directly from cylinders or as liberated from ethephon, is recognized as a safe alternative for ripening of fruits by scientific research provided it is used at low concentrationas per the traditional practice, the use of calcium carbide commonly known as ripening masala is very popular calcium carbide is a carcinogenic substance and can cause mouth ulcer, food poisoning or even cancer hence, it is dangerous for human lifetherefore, the bill seeks to provide for a legal mechanism of grading of ripened fruits and vegetables before they are offered for sale such a mechanism will ensure that artificial ripening of fruits and vegetables has been carried out using safe chemicalshence this billnew delhi;arjun meghwaljuly 7, 2015———— a billfurther to amend the food safety and standards act, 2006————(shri arjun meghwal, mp)mgipmrnd—1453ls(s3)—15-07-2015