Mumbai: The Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA), led by Commissioner Tukaram Mundhe, has suspended 43 food business licences and seized 17,824 kg of food articles worth Rs 63.09 lakh during a special enforcement drive ahead of Diwali, the agency said in a statement on Saturday. The inspections were conducted on November 6 and 7 across 73 establishments in the state's seven divisions — Greater Mumbai, Konkan, Nashik, Pune, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Nagpur and Amravati.
Source: IANS via The Freedom Press
This was the FDA's second statewide Diwali round in three days. In the earlier round, conducted on November 4 and 5 and announced on Friday, the agency suspended 105 food licences — including Mumbai units of quick-commerce firms Blinkit and Zepto — ordered seven establishments to shut, and seized 39,485 kg of food articles worth about Rs 1.35 crore. The fresh round's targets, quantities and named establishments are separate from that earlier action.
Nagpur tops the suspensions; Orient Club and a Wardha Blinkit unit hit
Nagpur division recorded the highest number of licence suspensions at 18, followed by Nashik with nine, Greater Mumbai with five, and Pune, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar and Amravati with three each, while Konkan accounted for two. Among those facing action was Blink Commerce Pvt Ltd, which operates the quick-commerce platform Blinkit, in Wardha. The FDA also suspended the licence of Mumbai's Orient Club — the 125-year-old vegetarian dining institution opposite the Chowpatty seaface — and took action against several sweet shops and food establishments in Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Thane, Nashik, Pune and Nagpur. Other Mumbai establishments named in the action include Mishti Bela and Company in Walkeshwar, Amar Sweetmeat Mart in Kalachowki and Jain Provision Stores in Malabar Hill, while Kesar Sweets in Navi Mumbai and Sangeeta Farsan and Wafers in Dombivli also faced suspension.
Source: Mirror Now
Food articles were seized from 29 establishments, and officials separately seized 3,935 kg of khoya and sweets from two vehicles transporting food articles on highways. The seized stock included khoya, mawa, paneer, pedha, kunda, kalakand, kaju katli, barfi, halwa, chakli, chivda, namkeen, almonds, figs, ghee, refined soybean oil and palmolein oil, seized on suspicion of substandard quality and over unhygienic handling and storage. Perishable items deemed hazardous to public health were destroyed on the spot in the presence of witnesses, the FDA said, and 10 food samples were collected for laboratory analysis.
Source: Free Press Journal
The inspections found unhygienic manufacturing and storage conditions, missing wire mesh on windows, inadequate pest control and failures to maintain Food Safety Management System (FSMS) and FoSTaC records. Some establishments also failed to produce water analysis reports, medical fitness certificates of food handlers and purchase bills, the statement said.
Separately, five cases were registered under Section 69 at Borivali and Bhandup in Mumbai, recovering penalties totalling Rs 70,000 for violations of Schedule IV and other provisions of the Food Safety and Standards (Licensing and Registration of Food Businesses) Regulations, 2011. Commissioner Mundhe said the FDA would enforce the rules uniformly: "Whether a brand is big or small, the rules are the same for all and the action will be equally strict. Honest businesses have our full cooperation; however, no leniency will be shown to those who endanger public health."
Source: Free Press Journal
The drive covered businesses dealing in sweets, khoya, paneer, farsan, Diwali snacks, dry fruits and edible oil, as well as hotels, clubs, canteens, grocery stores, e-commerce platforms and catering establishments — categories that see a sharp surge in demand during the festive season. Laboratory results for the 10 collected samples are awaited, and further action could follow, reports said.
Source: Nation Press