PACKAGED COMMODITIES ACT- SALES AT TEMPLES

The Packaged Commodities Act is very much in the news for the last few days after the Maggi noodles affair. It is reported that Nestle has violaed the provisions under the act by not mentioning/ wrongly mentioning the contents in the noodles packets and also not mentioning anything about the taste maker packet kept inside.

In the light of the above, I would like to raise another instance where the provisions of the act are violated with impunity. Perhaps this may be an area which many would not dare to tread. I am talking about the sale of 'Prasadams' at temples, duly packed, be it laddoos at tirupati or aravana and appam at sabarimala. I have also noticed many other temples sell these items across their counters as vazhipadu in sealed packets/containers. I wonder whether such sales at temples are covered under the above act as well as the Sales Tax Act of the States concerned.

As such the offerings or vazhipadu are expected to be placed before the deity while poojas are conducted and then it would be distributed among the devotees. However, in the modern era the manufacture and packing of these 'offerings' are automated and it never sees the sanctum sanctorum, leave alone being placed in front of the deity. Many temples sell the 'payasams (aravana)' in sealed containers collecting a price for the same. The containers do not have any indication regarding the contents, date of manufacturing, best before date etc. which are mandatory for any packed food products (eatables). It also does not bear the MRP, batch no etc. One would like to know whether these items are exempted from the provisions of the various acts and if so how do they plan to ensure the edibility of the contents. Or is it that the authorities will wake up only after something untoward happens?

Similarly, it is also observed that one temple in Kerala was selling gold in the form of gold gooseberry on Akshaya thrithiya day claiming it to be blessed ones. However, the price collected by them was much higher than the market price of gold on that particular day and it is also not clear whether they pay any tax on the sales effected by them!

I am sure the above observations made by me are going to raise hackles especially in the present "Hindutva" days, but somebody has to call the bluff of these people, no? I hope somebody will file a public interest litigation to prevent the temples from indulging in such illegal sales of items through their counters