Shillong, August 28: VPP legislator Ardent Miller Basaiawmoit questioned the Meghalaya Government’s financial planning for its food safety establishment during the Assembly’s Autumn Session, asking why foreseeable salary commitments had not been included in the original budget.
Responding, Health and Family Welfare Minister Wailadmiki Shylla defended a supplementary demand of ₹2,37,15,000, comprising ₹1.98 crore for salaries under the food safety officers’ establishment and ₹39.15 lakh for contractual technical personnel at the State Food Testing Laboratory.
Basaiawmoit challenged the Government’s explanation that the salary shortfall arose after the recruitment of 13 food safety officers through the Meghalaya Public Service Commission (MPSC).
He pointed out that recruitment involves several stages, including identifying vacancies, sanctioning posts, submitting requisitions, issuing advertisements, conducting examinations and finalising appointments. These processes, he argued, should have enabled the Government to anticipate the resulting financial liability.
The VPP legislator sought details on when the posts were sanctioned, when vacancies were reported to the MPSC, when the recruitment process began and when the Government became aware that the appointments were likely to be completed.
He also sought details of the sanctioned strength, vacancies, original salary provision, expenditure already incurred and the calculation behind the additional demand.
If the posts and recruitment process were known before the budget was finalised, Basaiawmoit argued, the additional liability suggested inadequate financial estimation rather than genuinely unforeseen expenditure.
Questions Over Contractual Staff Expenditure
Turning to the State Food Testing Laboratory, Basaiawmoit sought details of the number of contractual personnel, their remuneration, engagement periods, approval dates and the total annual financial liability.
He also questioned the advance referred to in the demand, asking under whose authority it had been drawn, from which budget head and whether any expenditure had been incurred before the required authorisation.
While acknowledging the importance of food safety personnel, he urged the Government to prepare a clear manpower plan covering staffing requirements, sanctioned posts, vacancies and geographical deployment.
Shylla Explains Additional Requirement
Shylla informed the House that 13 food safety officers were appointed on December 9, 2025, following recommendations of the MPSC. According to the Minister, the appointments were made after the department had submitted its budget estimates for 2026–27, resulting in no provision for their salaries and admissible allowances.
The State has 25 sanctioned posts of food safety officers, of which 21 are currently filled, Shylla said. Fourteen vacancies had been referred to the MPSC, which recommended 13 candidates. Subsequent promotions also altered the number of officers in position.
On the laboratory provision, Shylla said 21 contractual technical personnel had previously been funded by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). After that financial support was discontinued, the State Government took over their funding to ensure that laboratory services continued.
Their continued engagement was approved on January 13, 2026, after the budget estimates had already been submitted, he said.
The contractual personnel comprise two research assistants paid ₹25,000 each per month, 18 technical assistants paid ₹20,000 each and one junior chemist paid ₹25,000 per month.
Shylla maintained that field inspections and laboratory testing were interdependent components of the food safety system. Food safety officers conduct inspections, collect samples and initiate regulatory action, while laboratory personnel provide the scientific evidence required to support enforcement.
Urging the Assembly not to reduce the supplementary demand, the Minister said the provision was necessary to sustain essential food testing, respond to outbreaks and protect public health.
