‘Not trained for it’: Kerala doctors resist food testing task for VP Dhankhar, VVIPs

“We got an order deputing three doctors—Ernakulam General Hospital RMO, a doctor from Kodanad Family Health Centre, and one doctor from Aluva District Hospital—as food testing officers for the Vice President when he visited the district a day ago. We do not know how we could be deputed as a food testing officer as we do not have any qualification to do so,” Dr T Sudhakar, Ernakulam district president of KGMOA, told PTI.

He said that although the security team had verbally claimed there is a rule to depute doctors as food testing officers for the President, Prime Minister, and Vice President, no such directive exists in the Blue Book.

With a severe shortage of doctors already affecting the government sector, such moves could place additional strain on medical staff, KGMOA sources said.

Sources added that one doctor had to accompany the team as per the order, as they were informed that the Food Safety team would collect the samples, but the certification had to be done by the doctors.

“We were asked to certify the findings of the Food and Safety team after testing and were told that only the findings would be accepted by the VP’s security team,” Sudhakar said.

As per existing norms, testing food samples is carried out by the Food Safety Department, as they are trained for the task.

Doctors do not have any professional qualification to test food samples or to certify them as safe, sources said.

With inputs from PTI