The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Saturday banned the use of inferior quality bags for packing food items, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.
The IHC, in its decision, ordered that a large-scale crackdown be launched on the manufacturers of such bags across the country within 30 days.
It further said that factories, godowns producing such bags should be raided and the material should be confiscated.
The court noted that stuffing flour into cement bags had become the cause of cancer in people.
It further said that the people involved in this practice should not only be fined, but they should also be arrested.
The court also noted that flour worth billions of rupees was wasted every year due to its packing in poor quality bags. “A loss of over Rs80 billion was caused to the national exchequer due to negligence during the last eight years.”
The court directed the Ministry of Food and four provincial governments to launch a joint crackdown on the manufacturers of such bags.
It also directed the chief secretaries and food authorities to ensure that such bags are not used for packing.
The court ordered the Pakistan Standards and Control Authority and the Ministry of Food to submit a complete report to the court in this regard within three months.
Reporter: Hashir Warraich