42.9 tonnes of ‘adulterated’ food seized; 50 drug licences cancelled in Gujarat

Gujarat’s Food and Drugs Control Administration (FDCA) seized 42.9 tonnes of allegedly adulterated food products and cancelled the sales licences of 50 drugstores in a crackdown in August, Health Minister Praful Pansheriya said on Wednesday.

Pansheriya further said the FDCA ordered two drug manufacturing companies closed and suspended the licences of eight others. It also cancelled manufacturing licences for 11 drugs. The authorities issued notices to 20 drug makers after finding problems in samples collected from the manufacturers during laboratory investigation.

Of the 42 blood storage centres inspected, the authorities ordered three closed and issued notices to 12 others. "A special drive was organised to check the quality of antibiotic medicines sold in rural areas, and 588 samples of medicines were collected," the minister said, adding that their results were awaited.

A statement from the health minister’s office said, "More than 1,625 food units were inspected to ensure the cleanliness and quality of restaurants and dhabas in the state. Improvement notices were sent to 306 units for defects, and strict action was taken against 38 units for serious negligence, such as cancellation of licences.

This action was taken in the Surat Municipal Corporation, Valsad, Anand, Jamnagar, and Mehsana." More than 2,238 food businesses were inspected and 2,591 samples were collected for laboratory testing. During this period, 42,988 kg of allegedly adulterated food items worth Rs 93 lakh, including oil, chilli powder, and milk, were seized.

Of these, 14,709 kg of oil and 6,495 kg of edible oil were seized in Patan; 5,157 kg of ghee in Kamrej, Surat; 7,138 kg of milk in Jamnagar; and 6,071 kg of chilli powder in Deesa, Banaskantha. In addition, 3,078 firms were inspected for the illegal sale and use of dairy analogues (plant-based or synthetic alternatives to dairy foods) and 145 suspicious samples were collected.

The authorities destroyed 2.5 kg of substandard dairy analogue worth Rs 7.54 lakh. Illegal cosmetics worth more than Rs 2.68 lakh were seized from Aanki Herbal, a firm operated without a licence in Ahmedabad’s Tragad area, according to the department.