FDA arrests 14 for selling banned goods, items worth Rs32L seized

Pune: The Food and Drugs Administration (FDA)’s Pune division has filed FIRs against 14 people and arrested them in the last two days for selling prohibited items like gutka, paan masala and areca nuts, while also seizing allegedly adulterated food items and wrongly labelled products in raids held in the rural and urban areas of Pune, Kolhapur, Satara, Akluj and Sangli.The FDA teams seized adulterated dairy products, edible oils, nutritional supplements, banned gutka and flavoured tobacco together valued at Rs31.8 lakh. Additionally, most businesses were operating without necessary licences at various locations.Joint commissioner (food) of FDA Pune division Digambar Bhogawade said those selling and possessing prohibited items have been arrested. “During the raids, we found that several units lacked licences, had misbranded items, had published false labels and were selling reused tins. Samples of food items have been sent to labs for adulteration tests and traders will be prosecuted under the Food Safety Act and relevant BNS sections.”Bhogawade said, “Charges have been pressed under the BNS. We have invoked section 123 for causing hurt by means of poison, etc, with the intent to commit an offence, section 274 for adulteration of food or drink intended for sale and section 275 which penalises the sale, or offering/exposing for sale food or drink that is noxious, while knowing or having reason to believe that the item is unfit for consumption.”Officials found a large stock of ‘cheese analogs’ at a dairy in Keshavnagar in the city. Action was taken against dairies in the Wadgaon Sheri and Kharadi areas, where samples of ghee, paneer and other dairy products were collected. Paneer, suspected to be adulterated, worth lakhs of rupees was seized from an establishment in Kharadi.A special drive involving raids at five locations in the Ambegaon and Khed talukas was held. Here too, banned gutkha, pan masala, adulerated food items, betel nuts and other food stocks worth lakhs of rupees were seized. Illegal substances were confiscated from a warehouse in Manchar as well. A private manufacturer in the town was caught doing business without necessary business licences and registrations. Suspecting violations of food safety laws regarding the refined flour, gram flour, wheat flour and other food items being sold, a stock weighing 19,886 kg and valued at Rs10.5 lakh was seized from him.In the Khed taluka, an establishment in Khalchi Bhamburwadi was found operating without a licence and stock of betel nuts weighing 18,988 kg and valued at Rs8.2 lakh was seized. During a raid on a commercial establishment in Uruli Kanchan, stocks of soybean and palmolein edible oils from various brands were confiscated.Bhogawade said further action would be taken following the lab reports of seized food samples.