College students have a major grouse against the food served in the mess and canteen. To address this problem and promote healthy eating practices on the campuses, the University Grants Commission (UGC) recently directed the HEIs to follow the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) directives under its ‘Eat Right Campus’ initiative to healthy food habits, disseminating information, and monitoring the hygiene conditions of the mess and canteens. FSSAI has been reaching out to the students through social media feeds on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook to make them understand the importance of nutritious food and avoid junk food.
Speaking with Education Times, Manish Ratnakar Joshi, secretary, University Grants Commission, says, “It is important that students and the faculty learn basics of food hygiene and safety. There is a push from the Ministry of Health and Wellness to propagate the message of FSSAI’s healthy food practices, and UGC is helping them disseminate the information in HEIs.”
