Key Update

Amid rising summer health concerns, the food safety department in Ludhiana intensified checks on food adulteration and destroyed nearly 18 kg of suspected fake paneer during a surprise inspection drive at the city’s vegetable market on Wednesday.

Officials Inspect Paneer Sold at Roadside Stalls

Under the supervision of District Health Officer Dr Ashish Chawla, food safety teams inspected paneer sold at roadside stalls, carts, and temporary setups across the market. Officials collected paneer samples after suspecting adulteration and poor quality.

The samples were sent to a government laboratory for testing. As a precautionary measure, authorities destroyed the suspected paneer on the spot to prevent any possible risk to public health. Officials also warned vendors against selling adulterated dairy products and said repeated violations would invite action under the Food Safety and Standards Act.

Teams Check Fruit Ripening Centres for Illegal Chemicals

At the same time, teams from the food safety, horticulture, and environment departments inspected fruit ripening chambers and storage facilities handling bananas, mangoes, and papayas. Officials checked whether traders were using approved ethylene gas methods for ripening fruits and warned them against using banned calcium carbide, a chemical considered hazardous to health.

District Health Officer Dr Ashish Chawla said the department was continuously monitoring markets to ensure safe food for consumers. He added that officials had issued strict instructions to vendors against selling low-quality or adulterated food products and warned that violations would attract strict action.

Source: Hindustan Times