RAS question
What key reform was introduced by the FSSAI Licensing and Registration Amendment Regulations, 2026?
Correct answer: (B) Perpetual licence validity until suspended or cancelled.
The FSSAI Licensing and Registration Amendment Regulations, 2026 introduced perpetual validity for FSSAI licences and registrations until they are suspended, cancelled or surrendered.
Explanation
FSSAI’s 2026 amendment made perpetual validity a key licensing reform. The official FAQ states that FSSAI licences and registrations will remain valid unless they are suspended, cancelled or surrendered, and that food business operators are not required to renew them. This directly removes the earlier periodic-renewal burden, while keeping compliance duties alive: food businesses must still meet applicable hygiene and safety requirements. The same FAQ also places this reform alongside a risk-based inspection and food safety audit framework, so the change is not a relaxation of food safety oversight. The correct focus is therefore licence validity and renewal compliance, not exemption from regulation.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Mandatory annual renewal is the opposite of the stated reform, because FSSAI says food business operators are not required to renew their licences or registrations under perpetual validity.
- (C) The amendment introduced a risk-based inspection and audit framework, but the key licensing reform asked here is perpetual validity, not a blanket reduction in inspection frequency.
- (D) The FAQ refers to deemed registration for street food vendors already registered under the Street Vendors Act, 2014, not an exemption of all street vendors from registration.
Concept
This tests regulatory reforms under Indian Economy, especially ease of doing business within food safety compliance. It recurs in RAS because Rajasthan’s exam often links central regulatory changes with compliance burden, inspection systems and small-business formalisation.