Gurgaon: As part of the ongoing crackdown on adulterated paneer, Nuh district administration raided six dairies in Gujjar Nangla village of Firozpur Jhirka tehsil late Saturday night and destroyed 5,319kg of paneer suspected to be unsafe for consumption.Officials also collected seven samples for laboratory testing and seized and sealed 818kg of suspicious raw materials and chemicals allegedly used in paneer manufacturing.The action was carried out under the directions of deputy commissioner Akhil Pilani, in the presence of Firozepur Jhirka SDM Ruhani Seth and under the supervision of four duty magistrates. Six teams of food safety officers from Food and Drugs Administration department conducted simultaneous inspections at the six dairies.During the raids, officials found several suspicious ingredients allegedly being used in paneer production, including palm oil, milk powder, soy products, Rangkat (a colour-removing substance) and Ranipal fabric whitener, a chemical used to enhance the whiteness and brightness of clothes. The sealed materials, recovered from one dairy, comprised 750kg of milk powder, 60kg of palm oil, 5kg of Ranipal fabric whitener and 3kg of Rangkat. The department is investigating their intended use and other related aspects.The 5,319kg of paneer was buried in pits and destroyed under administrative supervision to prevent it from entering the market. Food safety officials sent the seven paneer samples, taken from different dairies, for laboratory analysis to ascertain their quality, purity and possible adulteration. Further legal action against the dairy operators will be initiated under Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, based on the laboratory reports.Pilani said the use of suspicious chemicals in food products, particularly milk and dairy products, poses a serious threat to public health. He said ensuring the availability of safe and quality food to consumers was a priority and warned that those found violating food safety standards would not be spared. The administration said surprise inspections and enforcement drives against the manufacture, storage, transportation and sale of adulterated and unsafe food products would continue across the district.
