Maharashtra Primary Schools Seek Education Department Help for FSSAI Licensing
Primary government schools across Maharashtra have approached state education authorities to seek immediate intervention over challenges faced during the registration process for licences through the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI).
The complications arose following official directions mandating schools to complete FSSAI registration and obtain safety licences in connection with the state school nutrition programme and overall food safety compliance.
Schools were directed to register via the central FoSCoS portal. However, according to the Maharashtra Rajya Prathamik Shikshak Samiti, the portal does not feature a separate registration category designed specifically for primary schools.
In a formal communication addressed to the education authorities, the teachers' organisation explained that the portal currently demands documentation and information that do not apply to government-run and local-body educational institutions. These include mandatory queries regarding business ownership structures and capital investments, requirements that are meant for commercial and private food establishments.
Vijay Kombe, state president of the Maharashtra Rajya Prathamik Shikshak Samiti, stated that schools are willing to adhere to the required safety regulations but need clear official procedural direction. "Schools are prepared to follow food safety rules but the department should provide guidance on how the registration should be done," Kombe said.
The teachers' organisation further pointed out widespread confusion regarding whose name should officially be used to complete the registration. In several local-body schools, individual headmasters are being asked to complete the registration process in their personal or professional capacity, rather than registering directly under the institutional name of the school or the corresponding local self-government body.
In its letter, the teachers' body requested the education department to step in and issue formal written instructions to all primary schools across the state. The samiti emphasized that the operational hurdles should be resolved directly at the administrative level, rather than leaving individual headmasters to manage the complexities of the registration portal on their own.
