FDA seizes 3,196 kg of festive food in Pune division, suspends 8 licences before Diwali

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) carried out a sweeping round of inspections across Pune division just days before Diwali, taking 3,196.2 kg of sweets, dairy products, savouries and other food items out of circulation in a single day. The stock came from 15 establishments and is valued at Rs 16.93 lakh. Eight licences were suspended with immediate effect, and three more businesses were told to halt operations.

The drive was conducted on Tuesday, November 3, in Pune, Pimpri Chinchwad, Solapur, Sangli and Kolhapur. It forms part of the "Safe Food, Safe Maharashtra" campaign, which FDA Commissioner Tukaram Mundhe has led. Inspection teams concentrated on sweet shops, dairies, bakeries and dry fruit traders, since the weeks around the festival see the heaviest demand for sweets and festive namkeen.

Of the total quantity, 1,440.5 kg, valued at Rs 4.35 lakh, was destroyed on the premises of the shops concerned. Officials gave a range of grounds for acting: suspected poor quality, dirty conditions where food was prepared, improper storage and handling, wrong labelling, expired raw material, and the absence of a licence. Some of the action also followed violations of food safety rules.

The FDA took action against 10 establishments in Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad alone. Janata Sweets in Keshav Nagar, Mundhwa, received a closure notice for running without a valid FSSAI licence or registration. At Karachi Sweet Mart in Camp, 186 kg of motichoor laddoo, khoya and malai peda, worth Rs 90,780, was seized and destroyed. Inspectors noted gaps in food colour records, poor storage and handling of khoya, expired ingredients and breach of Schedule 4 conditions.

At Shri Ganesh Laddoowale in Shikrapur, officials seized and destroyed 605 kg of Mysore pak and laddoos worth Rs 1.22 lakh, alleging that the unit worked in filthy conditions without a licence. Chamunda Maa Rabriwala in Mulshi lost 486 kg of malai rabri and angoori rasgulla, valued at Rs 1.75 lakh. At Rajmilan Sweets in Manchar, 250 kg of sweet mawa worth Rs 80,000 was seized and destroyed over suspicion that it was substandard.

Bikaner Mithaiwale in Mohammadwadi had 268 kg of barfi, worth Rs 88,440, seized and destroyed because of improper storage and handling. New Quality Dairy Farm in Shivajinagar lost 104.7 kg of dairy products worth Rs 31,493, while 92.5 kg of sweets and savouries worth Rs 32,860 was taken from Bhail Sweets in Pimple Saudagar.

At Pournima Sweets in Wanowrie, 58 kg of kalakand worth Rs 37,120 was seized, and a closure notice was issued because the shop had no licence or registration. At Puneri Sweets in Kalewadi, 35 kg of kalakand worth Rs 19,600 was destroyed on suspicion of poor quality.

Outside the twin cities, the biggest single seizure of the day came in Sangli. There, 749 kg of almonds worth Rs 8.98 lakh was seized from Ashish Traders at Vasantdada Market Yard, as officials suspected the nuts were of substandard quality and wrongly labelled. Sweets, cashew nuts and other goods were also seized from food businesses in Solapur and Kolhapur.

The FDA has urged all food business operators to obtain valid licences and registration, keep their premises clean, store and handle food properly, and comply with labelling and food safety rules.