The Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration has suspended 43 food business licences and registrations and seized about 17,824 kg of food products worth Rs 63.09 lakh during its ongoing statewide Diwali food safety drive, including action against establishments in Greater Mumbai and other major urban divisions.
The action followed inspections at 73 establishments across Greater Mumbai, Konkan, Nashik, Pune, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Nagpur and Amravati divisions on Friday and Saturday. The seized products included khoya or mawa, paneer, sweets, farsan, dry fruits and edible oils. The FDA said the products were seized over suspected substandard quality, unhygienic conditions and other violations of food safety regulations.
The department also recovered penalties totalling Rs 70,000 in five cases under Section 69 of the Food Safety and Standards Act. Nagpur recorded the highest number of licence and registration suspensions, with 18 cases, followed by Nashik with nine and Greater Mumbai with five. Pune, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar and Amravati recorded three suspensions each, while two establishments in the Konkan division faced action.
In Greater Mumbai, the FDA suspended the registration certificates of Gupta Chana Mart in Lalbaug and Jain Provision Stores at Malabar Hill. The licences of The Orient Club at Chowpatty, Mishti Bela and Company at Walkeshwar, and Amar Sweetmeat Mart at Ghodapdeo in Byculla were also suspended. Shri Ram Sweet and Farsan on Mathuradas Road in Kandivali West was shut, and its stock was seized.
The Konkan division accounted for the largest seizure by weight, with 13,970.9 kg of food products valued at Rs 54.52 lakh. Officials seized 4,193 kg of mawa, khoya, sweet kunda and special barfi worth Rs 8.92 lakh from P Brijwasi Mawa Barfiwala in Vasai East. Another 1,300 kg of loose kaju katli worth Rs 15.86 lakh was seized from Mahalaxmi Sweet and Farsan Mart in Bhayander East.
In Pune, officials seized 3,142 kg of food worth Rs 5.66 lakh. The Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar division reported seizures of 652 kg valued at Rs 2.33 lakh, while 365 kg worth Rs 1.31 lakh was seized in Amravati. The FDA said perishable food products considered hazardous to public health were destroyed on the spot in the presence of witnesses.
In Palghar district, officials seized a combined 3,935 kg of khoya and sweets from two vehicles intercepted on highways. A passenger bus stopped on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad highway, or NH 8, was found carrying 371 kg of sweet halwa and sweet mawa worth Rs 99,400. At Charoti Toll Plaza on NH 48 in Dahanu, another vehicle was found carrying 3,564 kg of khoya, sweet halwa and other traditional sweets valued at Rs 9.85 lakh. The FDA said the products in the second vehicle were unlabelled, transported at an improper temperature and suspected to be unsafe for consumption.
During inspections, officials also reported unhygienic production and storage practices, missing wire mesh on windows, inadequate pest control and failures to maintain Food Safety Management System and FoSTaC records. Water analysis reports, medical fitness certificates for food handlers and purchase bills were missing at some establishments. The department drew 10 samples for laboratory analysis.
FDA Commissioner Tukaram Mundhe said ensuring access to safe and good-quality food during Diwali remained the department’s priority and that action would be taken against businesses violating food safety rules, irrespective of their size or brand. Consumers can report food safety complaints through the FDA’s toll-free number, 18002223365, or the Food and Drug Grievance Portal.
