670 food samples failed quality test in 3 years

Aparna Banerji

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, October 15

In the past three years, a total of 670 food samples have failed the quality test in the district. Of these, the total number of failed samples of sweets is 198 and those of other food items which failed the quality tests are 430.

In 2017, as many as 30 per cent of the samples failed the test. Of the total 753 samples taken so far, as many as 164 have failed the test. The reports of 210 samples, taken in September and October, are still awaited and of the remaining 543 reports received, 164 (30 per cent) failed the quality test.

Of the total 670 samples failing the test in three years, as many as 214 were of milk and milk products, 25 were of sweets while 430 were of other food items.

From August 2011 until now, the cases of as many as 73 food establishments, the samples of which were tested as substandard, are pending in the court of the additional chief judicial magistrate. As many as 53 cases of such establishments are also pending in the court of the ADC. Meanwhile, the Health Department has submitted a fine of Rs 36,41,500, which had been imposed on the food establishments whose samples had tested substandard.

While the Health Department also accords a chance to the establishments to get their samples rechecked, as many as 111 such cases – which failed the tests - from April 2017 till date, have been sent for further analysis to the referral lab.

In 2015, as many as 768 samples were taken, of which 207 failed the test. In 2016, of the total 964 food samples taken by the health authorities in the district, 299 failed the test while in 2017, of the total 753 samples taken, as many as 164 failed the test.

Of these, as many as 222 samples of milk and milk products were taken in 2015, of which 84 failed the test. In 2016, 264 samples of milk and milk products were taken, of which 91 failed the test and in 2017, 224 samples of milk and milk products were taken of which 39 have failed the test so far. 

In the case of samples of sweets, as many as 58 were taken in 2015, of which three failed the test; 75 samples were taken in 2016 of which 20 failed the test and 65 samples were taken in 2017, of which two samples failed the test. 

Barring these, 488 samples of other food items were taken in 2015 of which 120 failed the test, 625 samples of other food items were taken in 2016, of which 188 failed and in 2017, 464 samples of other food items were taken, of which 122 failed the test. 

No major establishments or consignments caught

Every year ahead of Diwali, the Health Department raids wholesale factories or catches consignments of spurious sweets. This year so far, no such raid has been carried out nor any spurious wholesale manufacturing unit of khoya or other spurious milk products raided or sued for the preparation of sweets. The department also maintains that none of the big hotels or restaurants have so far been found selling spurious food items.      

District Health Officer Dr Balwinder Singh said, “We have been carrying out regular raids at various establishments. We have raided a majority of the cold storage units in the district. We have also raided many manufacturing units and factories but none of these were found to be storing spurious khoya or other milk products. However, our personnel and class IV employees have been deputed at key places and we shall act on any tip-off regarding any such unit which we receive in the coming days. It is suspected that the operators of spurious food items have changed their modus operandi this year. Hence, food items are possibly being stored in vehicles which are more difficult to trace.”