During preparations to buy sweets from the market before Raksha Bandhan, an action taken by the Food Safety Department in Lucknow exposed a shocking situation. During the raid on Shivachi Sweets located in the Hardoiya Lal Nagar area of Kakori, officials found excessive filth at the sweet making place. Dirty water was accumulated around the sweets, flies were present, and buffaloes were tied nearby.
When the Food Safety Department team entered the shop, a large number of buffaloes were found tied at the manufacturing site. According to officials, splatters of dung from these buffaloes were reaching the prepared sweets. The premises had damp walls, and foul water was collected in a nearby open drain, and it was in this environment that sweets were being prepared and stored.
During the investigation, approximately 1000 liters of contaminated solution, a mixture of milk powder, sugar, and water, was recovered in dirty plastic drums. Officials also found dead flies in this solution. At the time of the raid, about 1675 kilograms of ready-made sweets were also found, including about 1000 kg of kalakand, 350 kg of smooth barfi coated with work, 300 kg of doda barfi, and peda. All these sweets were kept amidst insects in the open. Additionally, the team found cephalite, alum, and some suspicious white crystal powder, which is suspected to have been used in the sweets.
The investigation also revealed that the establishment only had a retail sales license, while large-scale production of sweets was taking place there. None of the approximately 25 employees working here had undergone any medical examination. Furthermore, it was found that the employees were not following essential food safety standards such as wearing gloves and head caps.
The Food Safety Department has marked a total of 2675 kilograms of contaminated goods for destruction and sealed the room. Additionally, raw materials worth over 79 thousand rupees, amounting to about 686 kilograms, were seized. Currently, 15 samples taken from the site have been sent to the laboratory for testing. Following this entire action, the department has ordered the immediate closure of the unit.
