RAM CHANDRA Vs. STATE OF RAJASTHAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THESE three are revision applications by one Ramchandra who has been convicted in all the three cases under Section 7/16 of the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954 for adulterating milk, and sentenced to six months rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs. 1000/ - in each case. Mr. Mehrish, learned Counsel for the petitioner has submitted that the sentence awarded to the petitioner in all the three cases may be made concurrent so that the accused may in substance undergo imprisonment for six months, instead of 1 1/2 years. No other point is being pressed.

(2.) ACCORDING to him, the accused is a petty milkman and he is supporting five persons in his family out of which two are his parents and 3 are his minor children. It is urged that the adulteration consists of addition of water in milk and extraction of fat contents, therefore, it cannot be said to be injurious to health.

(3.) THE parliamentary mandate shows that the offence of adulteration of food stuffs has been treated as a very serious type of social crime. Adulteration is widely prevalent menace and a social crime of great magnitude in which a few try to get richer at the cost of the health and injury to the community at large. The makers of the Constitution while giving the Constitution to ourselves, provided in Article 47 that it would be endeavour of the State to raise the level of nutrition and improve public health. Article 47 reads as under: 47. The State shall regard the raising of the level of nutrition and the standard of living of its people and the improvement of public health as among its primary duties and, in particular, the State shall endeavour to bring about prohibition of the consumption except for medicinal purposes of intoxicating drinks and of drugs which are injurious to health.