People Are Talking About Junk Food Near Schools
By our team of in-house writers.
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First publised on 2026-09-24 08:17:12
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By our team of in-house writers.
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People are talking about the proposal to keep foods high in fat, salt and sugar out of a 50-metre radius around schools. It would reach shops, restaurants and food stands near India's 1.5 million schools, and public feedback is open until October 6. People say the idea was first floated in 2020, and that there is still no fixed timeline for the law.
People are talking about the numbers. Overweight or obese Indian children aged 5 to 19 rose from 28 million in 2015 to 41 million in 2025. People say nobody can read that and ask for more time.
People are talking about what the school gate used to be. Forty-five years ago, it had an aloo puri wala, a man who sold churans of many colours, and a line of others selling whatever a child could afford. People say none of it was health food, but all of it was somebody local who knew your father's name.
People say a packet is different. It comes with an advertising budget and no face at the gate. People say that is the thing worth regulating.
People are talking about the shopkeepers. Industry says compliance will be hard near crowded markets and that livelihoods are at risk. Maharashtra has already found violations at 133 shops near schools and ordered 51 to stop business. People ask whether those 51 were told the rule before the inspector arrived.
People say the law should aim at the packet and its advertising, and tell the small vendor plainly where the line is. People say a child's health and a vendor's living are not enemies. Only a badly drafted rule makes them so.
