To curb adulteration of food, the Punjab government will bring a new law with severe punishment for people found indulging in the malpractice, Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal said here Friday.

 

 Badal told media here that the new bill for this purpose would be introduced in the assembly session in February.

 

 "Harsher punishment will be stipulated in this bill for all those people indulging in such malpractices," he said, adding that the state government was fully committed to checking the menace of adulteration, which was a major health hazard for people.

 

 Referring to the union government's move to enhance the number of subsidised cooking gas cylinders from nine to 12 as a "political stunt", Badal said it was a "face saving" exercise of the Congress-led UPA government just before the general elections. 

 

 People will not be swayed by these ill-timed gimmicks of the UPA government, he claimed.