PUNE: Officials of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) seized gutka and paan masala worth Rs 76,800 from a general store in Pimpri late on Saturday.
The officials have lodged an FIR against the shop owner with the Pimpri police station.
"We received a tip-off that the general store owner was selling gutka and paan masala during the late hours. Our officials conducted a raid around 9 pm and seized banned products worth Rs 76,800 from his shop," said Shashikant Kekare, joint commissioner (food), FDA, Pune.
Food safety officials Ravindra Jekete and Kiran Jadhav carried out the raid under the guidance of assistant commissioners (food) Dilip Sangat and S S Desai.
The Pune division of the FDA has seized gutka worth around Rs 3.5 crore since the ban came into force in July 2012.
After the state government's decision to extend the ban by another year, the city FDA started implementing it strictly and is set to take action against offenders.
The ban, which has been imposed by the FDA from July 18, is not just limited to gutka and paan masala. It also includes the ingredients required for their preparation, such as scented areca nuts and scented tobacco.
However, it allows manufacturing, storage, distribution and sale of untreated tobacco and areca nuts.
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