The Telangana government has brought the Food Safety Department and Drugs Control Department under a unified administrative structure called the Telangana Standards Authority for Food and Essential Drugs (TG SAFE), in a move aimed at strengthening regulation, surveillance and enforcement related to food and medicines.
The government issued the order constituting TG SAFE on August 4, and the new structure came into force on August 15. IPS officer Avinash Mohanty has been appointed Commissioner of TG SAFE.
Six wings under TG SAFE
The new authority will operate through six major wings:
- Drug Administration
- Food Safety
- Enforcement
- Legal and Prosecution
- Laboratory
- Administration
The Drug Administration wing will continue to handle licensing, inspections, sampling, testing and investigations concerning medicines and related products. The Food Safety wing will oversee food licensing, registration, inspections, sampling, testing and enforcement.
The Enforcement wing will support both departments through intelligence gathering, risk-based inspections and prosecution assistance. Police personnel are also expected to be attached to TG SAFE to strengthen enforcement activities.
Statutory powers remain separate
Although the two departments will function under a common administrative structure, their legal powers will remain separate.
The Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 will continue to govern food related enforcement, while the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 will continue to govern medicines and drug regulation. Officers will retain their statutory powers under the respective laws.
Focus on Hyderabad’s CURE region
- TG SAFE has been directed to begin unified operations in the CURE (Core Urban Region Economy) region, which has a high concentration of food businesses and drug establishments.
- The government expects the common administrative and enforcement system to improve coordination, intelligence sharing, inspections and regulatory action.
Why the move matters
- The restructuring comes amid growing concerns over food adulteration, unsafe food products, spurious medicines and regulatory violations.
- The government expects TG SAFE to improve surveillance, strengthen enforcement and enable quicker action against violations.
- For consumers, the key expectation is stronger inspections, faster action against violators and better coordination between food and drug regulators.
Business Galaxy takeaway: TG SAFE does not eliminate the separate legal authorities governing food and medicines. Instead, it creates a unified administrative and enforcement framework while retaining their separate statutory powers.
