Food safety team raids 6 eateries in Amritsar
The district food safety team on Thursday conducted raids on six of the eateries and dairies at Daburji, Nijjarpura and Jandiala villages in the district and collected 21 food samples for testing.
The team, led by food safety officers Simranjit Singh and Ashwani Kumar, raided sweet shops, confectioneries, dairies, dhabas and grocery stores, to keep a check on the quality of food items being manufactured and sold in the city, the health department officials said.
During the check, the team noticed that many of these food outlets were running without the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) licence and registration and were found in unhygienic conditions.
District health officer Dr Lakhbir Singh Bhagowalia said, “To check the food quality, as many as 21 food samples have been collected for testing from six outlets. These villages, where the raids were held, are located on the outskirts of the city. We have not sealed any eateries yet.”
The seized food samples, including milk products, sweets and species, have been sent to the Drug, Food and Chemical Testing Laboratory in Kharar (Mohali) for testing, the district health officer said, adding that these food items have higher risk of adulteration.
The team also found that the workers at these outlets were working without undergoing medical checkups, Bhagowalia said,
“The aim of medical checkup of the labourers working at these outlets is to protect the health of the public and consumers. The workers and cooks should not be suffering from any communicable disease, as the infection can be transmitted,” he added.
“We have issued notice to these food outlets for applying for the FSSAI licence and registration, besides, getting the medical checkups of their workers done as per the norms. We are also planning to conduct various awareness camps related to health and hygiene in these areas to avoid adulteration. The legal proceedings on these outlets will be initiated once we get the reports of the seized food items,” the district health officer said.