UP not to follow Centre's diktat

ethephon or ethylene gas is harmful Interestingly, even though FSSAI has been entrusted the responsibility of "Framing of Regulations to lay down the standards and guidelines in relation to articles of food and specifying appropriate system of enforcing various standards thus notified'', the Union Ministry of Agriculture, in a letter dated July 28, 2010 has overruled an FSSAI notification that declared "dipping of fruits in a solution of ethephon or exposure of fruits to ethylene gas'' as "harmful practises''.

But though the order was dispatched to various state governments with immediate effect, in UP, FSSAI is still being regarded as the final word on the subject. Confirming the same, spokesperson, UP FDA said: "When we took up the issue with FSSAI, they claimed that the ministry of agriculture sent out this letter without consulting them. They reiterated that the use of ethephon or ethylene gas is harmful and carcinogenic (cancer causing) in nature. As a result, the raids on banana in UP will continue.''

Ethaphon, along with calcium carbide is popularly used for ripening bananas. Interestingly, though the herbicide also naturally occurs inside the fruit, exposure to the herbicide, for ripening, can cause considerable damage to the human body. In UP, the FDA has also found instances of ethephon and tanker ethylene gas being use for artificial ripening, well beyond the permissible limits.