On instructions from the District Collector Anurag Chaudhary, the Food and Drugs Department has begun raids on sweet manufacturers and retailers, ahead of the Diwali festival.
Adulteration of sweets and other food items during the festive season is a rampant practice and the administration has begun an earnest drive against adulteration of sweets and such food items. Several teams of the department raided various sweet shops on Thursday and seized considerable stock of sweets that were either contaminated or stale. The teams also destroyed sweets, oil, colours and other ingredients that were not fit for consumption.
A food safety team under the supervision of SDM Jayant Singh raided the premises of Sri Ram Mishtan Bhandar situated at Gole Ke Mandir and seized expired noodles, green chutney, decayed oil and outdated sweets that were prepared almost a week ago. The team also collected samples of sweets and samosas and have sent them for tests.
Another team raided the premises of a sweet shop situated near the Agrasen Park and seized contaminated food items including milk, ghee, oil and colour in large quantities. The makeshift shop had no name board or registration and sweets were being prepared in a very unhygienic manner. The team also collected samples from Ayodyawasi Sweets and Namkeen Center located nearby and collected samples of sweets and other eatables. The samples have been sent for tests.
Another Food Safety team raided the premises of Poonam Sweets situated at 7th Cross, Morar and seized contaminated sweets and samosas in large quantity. It was found that the shop has been using oil that was more than a fortnight old to prepare samosas. The team also destroyed 14 kilos of contaminated mava. Many packets of non branded green peas, noodles and salty mixtures were also seized.
Sources in the Food and Drugs Department said that all sweet shops in the city are under the surveillance of the Food safety teams. The department has also appealed to the people to be alert and cautious while buying Diwali delicacies from the shops.