There is hardly any sector, where the government can claim credit for good and efficient management. The reasons behind such failures can be attributed to absence of transparency, accountability and all pervasive corruptions of the administration. It is generally accepted when the government itself suffers weakness of efficiency and corruption, the whole administration cannot avoid its bad influence. Nothing in the administration works efficiently. Only police and RAB power are increasing, but grim is also on the increase. Most unusually, police have been asked to stop use of formalin in fruits and food. Formalin use has taken epidemic proportion.It is alleged that the kits being used are meant to measure chemicals or gases in the air of laboratories, not in food items and it is not used for detecting formalin in food even in the USA, the origin of the kits.The law enforcers have been trying to check whether vehicles entering the capital contain perishables treated with formalin. Their intention may be good, but the question is being asked if it is acceptable that outside Dhaka formalin use is to be ignored. Dhaka people are also not sure that because of police operation fruits are safe or food items are free from formalin. The people of Dhaka are not sure that the government action is being successful other than causing losses to wrong people and saving the people responsible for applying formalin on food items. Destroying some fruits and food on suspicion of formalin at the reaching position of Dhaka cannot be the full answer without taking steps against those using formalin. Where corruption is free there formalin free food is impossible.The handling of the formalin issue must begin at the root as widespread use of formalin in preservation of fish, fruits and other food items is posing a serious threat to public health. Ad hoc measure can’t do with a problem as pervasive and deep-rooted as food adulteration in the country. Let the government make its position clear whether any action has been taken against those responsible for import of kit which is not fit for testing presence of harmful chemical in fruits, fish and vegetables in our country. Under the project involving Tk five crore, they bought 80 devices at a cost of Tk one crore and distributed those to conduct drives against formalin. Evading any direct reply whether any technical committee approved import of the device, an official said, “The fisheries department did it.” The committee which approved the import comprised of officials from the Ministries of Fisheries and Planning but none from any scientific organisations, reports said. The question which is being raised how persons with faulty formalin testing kits can be effective in the fight against formalin. Here also the ordinary people will suffer and some people will have the opportunity of making money the corrupt way.Nasima Khan, principal scientific officer at the Institute of Food Science & Technology of BCSIR told the media that they were hundred percent confident about their kits. Meanwhile, Helal Uddin, vice president of FBCCI, said the tool even gives reading of formalin when kept at an office room where there were no fruits or vegetables.Whatever be the conditions of formalin testing kits, one thing is sure that now and then police action will not be the answer.The right thing should be not to make life more difficult for helping the corrupt ones. The responsibility has to be taken by Ministry like Health or Food to go about ending formalin use in all food items. The police operation can be sudden and swift but not the sure way of helping people to have confidence about the government’s success against formalin used food.
