Over 22,000 litres of ‘adulterated’, expired ghee worth ₹1.6 crore seized in Rajasthan; 3 arrested

Three people were arrested on Saturday after authorities seized over 22,000 litres of suspected adulterated ghee worth around ₹1.60 crore during raids at two establishments in Rajasthan's Sri Ganganagar district, police said on Sunday.

Ram Tayal, 26, Mukesh Kumar, 24, and Vikas Kumar, 42, were arrested by the CID Crime Branch, local police and food safety officials as part of a statewide crackdown on adulterated food products ahead of Diwali, as per PTI news agency. The joint team recovered a total of 22,138 litres of ghee from the two premises, besides ₹3.50 lakh in cash suspected to have been generated through its sale.

ALSO READ | 569 arrested in 10-day crackdown in northeast Delhi ahead of festive season

Expired ghee allegedly repackaged and sold

During a raid at Ananya Trading Company's warehouse and factory, officials found 16,394 litres of suspected adulterated ghee packed under different brand names, including Trisalwa, Bansuri, Shrinand and Mayra.

The team also recovered expired ghee, containers without labels, packaging material, stickers, a packing machine and other equipment.

According to police, preliminary questioning suggested that expired and returned ghee was being repackaged with fresh labels before being sold in the market.

Investigators also suspect that palm oil and vanaspati were sourced from Gujarat and used to prepare adulterated ghee, which was allegedly supplied to dealers in Sri Ganganagar and nearby areas.

The premises were sealed after food safety officials collected samples for laboratory testing.

ALSO READ | 948 litre of adulterated ghee seized in Delhi

Delhi seizes 948 litres of suspected adulterated ghee

On Wednesday, the Delhi government seized 948.9 litres of suspected adulterated ghee during raids at three locations across the Capital as part of its festive-season crackdown on food adulteration.

The food safety department recovered 389.9 litres from Bhogal Market in southeast Delhi, 338 litres from Najafgarh Market in southwest Delhi and 221 litres during a joint operation with Delhi Police in Shiv Vihar in northeast Delhi.

Officials also collected 15 ghee samples from Bhogal and Najafgarh markets and sent them for laboratory testing. Further action will be taken based on the results.

Delhi chief minister Rekha Gupta said the government planned to modernise the food safety department and increase its staff strength to speed up inspections and enforcement. Personnel from other departments could also be deployed if required.

Gupta said the crackdown would continue throughout the year and would not be restricted to the festive season. She added that strict action would be taken against those found involved in food adulteration.

The government is also planning a public awareness campaign to encourage residents to report food adulteration, poor-quality food and the sale of expired products.

Residents can register complaints through the food safety department's helpline, 1800-11-3921, during office hours, officials said.