Meerut: To ensure that Holi is free from adulterated sweets, the Food Safety and Drugs Administration (FSDA) department has formed three teams which will swoop down on shops and pick up samples of edible items for testing. The department will send the samples for testing to a laboratory in Lucknow, and actions against the erring shops will be taken after the test results arrive.
Three teams of five health officials each have been formed, an official privy to the development said. The teams will conduct surprise inspections at shops in rural and urban areas to check adulteration and sale of adulterated items in the market.
With ‘gujhiya’, ‘namkeen’ and cooking oils on their target, the teams will conduct raids in all the busy markets to ensure that people don’t fall prey to adulterated items. The drive will continue till March 5.
“As many as three teams of five persons each have been formed, which will conduct regular checks and send suspicious food items to laboratory for testing. If any sub-standard food item is found, the person will be dealt with as per rules,” said Archana Dheeran, designated officer of FSDA.
The samples will not be sent to the city laboratory, which is situated within the campus of Chaudhary Charan Singh University (CCSU). Rather, they are sent to a laboratory in Lucknow to “avoid any manipulation”.
“The food items are preserved and sent to Lucknow by courier. The result will reach us within 20 days of the courier. But, in some cases, the samples are also sent to local laboratory if they look evidently adulterated,” said Dheeran.
Buyers can also lodge complaints related to food adulteration with the department and their names are kept “under the wraps”, said the official.
“We are focusing mainly on ‘gujhiyas’, ‘mathris’ and other items which are made ahead of Holi,” Dheeran said.
The department officials have also warned people of bright-coloured sweets as they might contain harmful chemicals which cause food poisoning, stomach ache, vomiting and infection.
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