Multi-week crackdown exposes adulteration, misbranding and short-weight practices across city’s dairy and sweet chains
Pune, October 17, 2025 — As Maharashtra’s festive markets brim with sweets, snacks, and dairy treats, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Pune has uncovered a darker underlayer: widespread adulteration and mislabeling worth ₹1.97 crore.
The agency’s special enforcement drive, spanning three weeks before Navratri and Diwali, targeted over 190 manufacturing and retail units across Pune, Pimpri-Chinchwad, and adjoining talukas. Inspectors found contaminated milk solids, misdeclared weights, and labeling violations across a range of products including khoya, paneer, ghee, and packaged sweets.
While many traders cooperated, the FDA confirmed that notices have been issued to multiple establishments, and prosecutions under the Food Safety and Standards Act (FSSA), 2006 may follow once laboratory analyses conclude.
Officials say the sweep is part of a state-wide “Clean Festive Food” campaign, aimed at protecting consumers during the high-risk season when demand spikes and unscrupulous suppliers flood the market with inferior or hazardous goods.
I. Inside the Crackdown
How It Began
The operation, internally codenamed Project Suraksha Mithai, began in early October following intelligence inputs from district surveillance teams and consumer tip-offs about suspicious milk supplies entering the city’s wholesale mandis.
Over 400 random samples were drawn from sweet shops, dairy plants, halwai units, and cold-storage chains. A combined team of 25 food safety officers and two assistant commissioners led the inspections, working in shifts that extended well past midnight in some industrial zones.
“Adulteration tends to peak just before Diwali,” explained FDA Joint Commissioner (Food) Pune Division S.N. Ukhale. “We decided to go deeper this year—testing not just finished sweets but also inputs like mawa and ghee at the source.”
II. The Findings
Unsafe and Misbranded Goods
Preliminary laboratory reports showed contamination and misrepresentation across several categories:
| Product Type | Common Violation Found | Health Risk / Legal Breach |
| Khoya (Mawa) | Starch and detergent admixture | Food adulteration (Sec 59 FSSA) |
| Ghee | Reconstituted vegetable oil sold as pure ghee | Misbranding & fraud |
| Milk & Paneer | Water dilution, non-permitted preservatives | Bacterial contamination |
| Packaged Sweets | Under-declared net weight, missing FSSAI license number | Violation of labeling norms |
| Namkeens & Dry Fruits | Use of mineral oil polish, fungal traces | Chemical hazard |
In some facilities, inspectors reportedly found expired ingredients re-used after re-labelling. One unit in Bhosari MIDC had stacked 200 kg of khoya in unrefrigerated storage, covered by tarpaulin, with flies swarming over open trays.
Total value of seized stock: ₹1.97 crore, pending final destruction orders after laboratory confirmation.
III. The Legal Framework
Under the Food Safety and Standards Act (2006), adulteration or sale of unsafe food carries imprisonment of up to six years and fines reaching ₹5 lakh. Misbranding—false quantity, misleading claims, or fake purity seals—can attract immediate cancellation of license.
Each manufacturer is required to display a valid FSSAI license number on product labels. Retailers must maintain batch-wise purchase invoices for traceability.
The Pune FDA also invoked sections of the Legal Metrology (Weights and Measures) Act, which penalizes under-weighing and quantity deception.
IV. Where the Lapses Occur
Festive-season supply chains often stretch thin. A typical halwai operation depends on multiple small-scale suppliers—mawa from rural dairies, ghee from contract processors, dry fruits from traders.
“When orders triple, they cut corners,” says a senior food safety officer. “Milk solids from unlicensed dairies, artificial essence instead of natural flavor, even industrial starch to bulk up sweets—it all creeps in.”
The economics make it tempting: mixing 10 kg of genuine khoya with 2 kg of synthetic starch can save ₹600–₹800 per batch, multiplying profit margins across large volumes.
V. Consumer Awareness and Toll-Free Reporting
The FDA has urged citizens to act as first responders. Posters across Pune markets now display the helpline 1800-222-365, inviting calls about suspicious sweets or unlabeled packs.
Tips have already led to two follow-up raids—one at Sinhagad Road, another near Aundh Camp—where mislabeled dairy pouches were traced to an unregistered cold-chain truck from Ahmednagar.
Officials emphasize that consumer participation is vital for deterrence. “We cannot be in every kitchen or godown,” said Ukhale. “But every buyer can be a safety inspector.”
VI. Testing & Prosecution Pipeline
The Laboratory Process
Samples are dispatched to the State Food Testing Laboratory (Pune) within 24 hours. Each undergoes chemical, microbiological, and compositional analysis. Reports are expected within 15 days.
Failing samples are categorized as:
- Sub-standard (minor deviation),
- Misbranded (label violation), or
- Unsafe (potentially injurious).
Based on severity, cases move to adjudication or judicial prosecution.
Expected Next Steps
At least 22 cases have already entered the prosecution pipeline. Repeat offenders risk permanent license revocation. Several establishments face cumulative penalties exceeding ₹25 lakh.
VII. Past Patterns: A Recurring Seasonal Menace
Food adulteration around Diwali is not new. Nationwide drives in previous years have unearthed similar malpractice:
| Year | Statewide Seizures | Key Violations |
| 2022 | ₹1.3 crore | Synthetic milk & colorants |
| 2023 | ₹1.6 crore | Mislabelled dry fruits |
| 2024 | ₹1.8 crore | Excess starch in khoya |
This year’s tally has already surpassed previous totals, underscoring both increased vigilance and persistent non-compliance.
Food-safety activist Dr. Amita Deshmukh, who runs the NGO Clean Plate India, remarked:
“Adulteration is an annual festival in itself. Until penalties bite hard, deterrence will remain limited.”
VIII. Health Implications
Adulterated dairy can lead to gastrointestinal infections, liver stress, and in chronic cases, toxicity from non-food-grade chemicals. Synthetic ghee made from industrial fat poses cardiovascular risks.
Doctors at Sassoon General Hospital report a 15 percent uptick in festival-season food-borne cases every year. Pediatrician Dr. Prakash Shinde warns:
“Children and the elderly are most vulnerable. Even trace contamination in sweets can trigger acute poisoning.”
IX. Industry Reaction
Sweet-Shop Owners Speak
The Pune Mithai Traders’ Association welcomed the crackdown, distancing itself from violators. “Genuine producers suffer when fakes thrive,” said association president Ramesh Bansal. “We urge the FDA to name offenders publicly to restore consumer trust.”
Dairy Industry Response
Cooperative dairies like Katraj Dudh Sangh have introduced voluntary QR-code transparency—scanning reveals milk source, test date, and fat content. “Transparency is the best defence,” said CEO Anil Patil.
X. Enforcement Challenges
Despite stronger rules, enforcement remains uneven.
- Manpower: Only 48 food inspectors cover a district population exceeding 95 lakh.
- Coordination gaps: Local health departments often overlap with state FDA functions.
- Legal delays: Adulteration cases drag for years due to overloaded courts.
Consumer bodies have called for fast-track food courts on the model of consumer commissions.
XI. Broader Consumer Lessons
The FDA’s advisory outlines simple precautions:
- Check labels for FSSAI number, date, and manufacturer details.
- Avoid unbranded open sweets exposed to dust.
- Prefer refrigerated dairy over loose mawa in open baskets.
- Look for color uniformity—bright hues often indicate artificial dyes.
- Buy from licensed outlets during peak seasons.
XII. National and Policy Perspective
The Union Health Ministry is watching the Maharashtra pilot closely. If results show measurable reduction in adulteration cases, similar state-level drives may be standardized.
Proposals include:
- Mandating festival-season pre-testing for bulk sweet manufacturers.
- Introducing QR-traceable supply chains using blockchain audits.
- Creating a public “Food Safety Score” for outlets, displayed like hygiene grades.
XIII. The Human Side
At Pune’s bustling Budhwar Peth, halwai Rafiq Ansari leans over trays of fresh barfi, stamping each box with his FSSAI number. “We have nothing to hide,” he says. “If one shop cheats, everyone pays.”
Nearby, customers read new posters warning of adulteration. “I never checked expiry dates before,” admits college student Sneha Joshi. “Now I will.”
XIV. Enforcement Outlook
Officials say post-Diwali surveillance will continue through December to monitor milk supply and dry-fruit imports. Separate teams will verify online listings on food-delivery apps to detect ghost kitchens operating without licenses.
The FDA has also written to the Pune Police Commissionerate seeking joint raids in high-density zones during night hours.
XV. Expert Opinion: Building a Culture of Compliance
Food-law scholar Prof. Vivek Naik (National Law School, Pune) argues that punitive raids must evolve into preventive ecosystems:
“Licensing, vendor education, and consumer vigilance should work in tandem. Otherwise, each festive season becomes a new headline.”
He advocates digitized supply-chain audits, random chemical-marker tagging, and public dashboards displaying test results to institutionalize deterrence.
XVI. Looking Forward
The FDA plans quarterly outreach camps to train small vendors in hygiene, labelling, and legal metrology. By 2026, the department aims to implement predictive analytics to flag high-risk clusters based on complaint trends.
For now, however, the message is immediate: adulteration is a criminal act, not a festive shortcut.
XVII. Conclusion
Pune’s ₹2-crore seizure may seem a drop in the state’s festive economy, but its symbolism is larger. It represents both administrative vigilance and consumer awakening.
Each sealed packet tells a cautionary tale: that the joy of celebration must not come at the cost of public health. If the crackdown achieves sustained deterrence, it could become the model for other metros facing similar seasonal surges in food fraud.
In the end, a sweet festival will be truly “sweet” only when safety is part of its recipe.
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