Factory making spurious ghee busted, 1 arrested

Tribune News Service
Amritsar, January 15

The food wing of the Health Department claimed to have busted a factory of spurious ghee in the Model Town area of Chheharta here on Monday late night.

Officials seized 5,000 kg of palm oil, 1,650 kilo of butter, 200 litres of butyro refractometer (BR) — a wax like substance used to add mass to the product — and 1 lakh packets of ghee (in the packing of 1 kg, 500 gm and 200 gm) from the factory.

District Health Officer Lakhbir Singh Bhagowalia said the ghee packets had a label of the Dairy Shine brand, the units of which are in Panjwar village of Tarn Taran district.

Bhagowalia said the police had arrested the owner of the unit, identified as Kulbir Singh, in this connection.

“A preliminary investigation revealed that Kulbir was procuring palm oil from Delhi. He has also sold the products manufactured in the factory to dairies in rural areas. We are also investigating that if the original Sun Shine brand manufacturing units have any relation with him or not,” said the health officer.

He added that the investigation would be conducted to identify the entire chain involved in this racket.

The palm oil priced at Rs60 per kg is mixed with BR in much smaller quantities to produce butter. The produced butter is further processed into ghee.

Health officials said the windows of the factory were covered with curtains so that outsiders could not peep inside it.

The department has collected six samples of various ingredients from the place and sent them to the food testing laboratory in Kharar. The department has also sealed other products stocks and the factory.

A case under Sections 272, 273 and 420 of the IPC has been registered against Kulbir. The health officer added that further action would be initiated after receiving the test reports.