The cabinet has approved in principle a draft of the ‘Iodised Salt Act, 2020’ keeping provisions of one to three years of imprisonment or fine of Taka 50,000 to 1.5 million, for unregistered salt traders.
The approval came at the regular weekly cabinet meeting on Wednesday with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the chair. The Prime Minister joined the cabinet meeting through a videoconference from Ganabhaban, while other cabinet members got connected from the Bangladesh Secretariat, reports BSS.
Briefing reporters after the meeting, Cabinet Secretary Khandaker Anwarul Islam said under the section 42 of the draft law, the person who will be found breaching the law will be awarded punishment of minimum one year to maximum three years of imprisonment and fine of minimum Taka 50,000 to maximum 1.5 million or the both.
“There will be a 14-member National Salt Committee, where the industries secretary will act as the president and the BSCIC (Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industry Corporation) will be included as the member secretary to supervise all the activities under the Iodized Salt Act, 2020,” the cabinet secretary said.
The proposed law has empowered the National Salt Committee to supervise the production of salt, its processing, refining, iodising, importing, hoarding and making wholesale supply and management.
All the Traders would have to take license under the law for doing salt business and it will be regarded as offense if any unregistered person does import, makes stocks, wholesale supply, refines and runs idolised salt factory anywhere of the country.
The government has drafted the law with an aim to make it mandatory for all edible salt to be iodised for ensuring use of iodised salt in producing food items for human and animals and to bring the salt sector under proper management, he said.