Thursday June 25, 2009, 3:31 pm
Sirsa, June 25
Thanks to the lackadaisical approach of the district health authorities, Sirsa residents are being forced to use adulterated milk.

Five out of the 10 samples of milk taken from various points in the district from January to April this year have been found adulterated, making the adulteration rate as high as 50 per cent.

However, the sampling of milk and its products is too slack in the district as only three out of the 29 samples of food items taken by the Government Food Inspector (GFI) this month were of milk and its products.

Over 500 milk vendors, a large number of dairies and eight chilling centres collect and distribute milk in the district. Residents have alleged that adulterated milk was being sold in the district with impunity.

“Over half a dozen milk cream dairies have been operating on the outskirts of the town, where milk vendors visit daily to get the cream separated from milk and then mix the toned milk with one prepared from powdered milk,” alleged Nirmal Ganeriwala, state secretary of the Haryana Agarwal Vikas Sangthan and secretary of the District Congress Committee.

Ganeriwala alleged that despite complaints regarding the supply of adulterated milk, the authorities have failed to act.

Sirsa GFI Subhash Chander said they have a target of taking 30 samples of food items in a month and he had been achieving those targets every month. “We cannot take samples of milk every time as we have to check other commodities too,” he added.

He, however, admitted that adulteration in milk was much higher than that in other food items and five out of the 10 samples of milk taken between January and April have been found below par.

“No synthetic milk has been ever found in Sirsa district. Every time a milk sample tests negative, it is due to the shortage of fat or solid not fat (SNF) in the milk,” maintained Subhash Chander.

He said the GFIs have to look after duties like taking samples as well as prosecuting food adulterators in courts and hence left with little time to think beyond achieving their minimum targets.

Friday June 26, 2009, 7:35 pm
Fatehabad, June 26
The health authorities today sealed a dairy situated on the local Hanspur road after they allegedly found fake milk being prepared in the unit.

The authorities also unearthed an ice candy unit allegedly using synthetic poster colours in making candies.Samples of ice candies were taken from the unit situated on the local Kharaitikhera road.

However, the action of the authorities came under the scanner after the dairy owner allegedly got an opportunity to throw away huge quantities of “fake milk” and no samples of chemical colours could be taken from the ice candy factory.

The Tribune had on June 17 reported how slack sampling of food items, particularly of milk products, had been encouraging the adulteration of food items.

“When we went to the dairy situated on the Hanspur road, a man sitting there escaped. The raiding party went to the Deputy Commissioner’s office to get permission for sealing the unit. Someone threw away milk stored in a container. We sealed the dairy in the presence of its owner, who arrived later,” said Surinder Singh Poonia, Government Food Inspector, Fatehabad.

He said over 50 kg of skimmed dry milk powder, 50-60 empty milk powder packs, a plunger used for mixing dry milk with water and some other instruments used for making “fake milk” were seized from the dairy. Earlier, the health authorities found an ice candy unit allegedly using synthetic chemical powder for giving colour to the candies.