PFA teams to raid eateries at Sehr, Iftar times

LAHORE: With the start of Ramazan, the Punjab Food Authority has spread its wings and pulled up their socks against food business operators for keeping vigorously checks and balances on them.

In this connection, special raiding teams have been constituted in each district of Punjab in order to monitor the suspicious activities of shopkeepers and food business operators at Sehri and Iftar times. Besides, teams also inspected the quality of food especially yogurt, milk, Dahi Bhallay, fruit chaat and other products because the demand of these items increase in Ramazan.

This was informed by Punjab Food Authority Director General Noor-ul-Amin Mengal while talking to reporters Thursday. He said that 33 food premises were closed down, dozens of people penalised with heavy fine tickets along with thousands of kilograms low quality and adulterated foodstuff discarded during its operation throughout the province.

He said that number of inspection teams have been increased in 36 districts of Punjab. He warned Food Business Operators (FBOs) to leave playing with the consumers health just for minting money and to stop producing poor quality products and tainted foods. He said that PFA will foil the plans of adulteration mafia.

Raiding teams will pay surprise visit to food points, including shops, cold storages, vegetables and fruit markets, production units and factories. He has directed the operations wing directors and deputy director to personally visit Ramazan Bazaars and markets and keep watch on the performance of field teams. He said strict action will be taken against the PFA staff in case of any negligence during duty hours. In a query, Mengal said that quality assurance managers and food safety officers have been deputed in all Model and Ramazan Bazaars, who are responsible to ensure the quality of essential commodities and the hygienic principles, respectively.

The PFA DG, sharing the facts and figure of the daylong activity of the operations teams, said that overall 33 food businesses were sealed and 72 FBOs penalised with imposing fine tickets totalling Rs566,500 in Punjab. He said that action was taken against them for violating the provincial food law and regulations like selling prohibited tobacco item ‘gutka’, adulteration, usage of poor quality ingredients, for not following the PFA’s instructions, poor hygienic conditions and other issues.

Seven food points were sealed in Lahore, two each food points sealed in Rawalpindi, Dera Ghazi Khan and Multan, four in Sargodha, one in Gujranwala and three in Faisalabad by PFA watchdogs. As well as, raiding teams imposed fine of Rs15,000 on two shops in Bahawalpur, Rs88,500 fine on 14 FBOs in Rawalpindi, Rs125,500 on 18 eateries in Sargodha, Rs15,000 fine in Multan, Rs11,000 fine in Faisalabad, Rs85,500 fine on 11 food premises in DG Khan and Rs226,000 fine on 22 people in Gujranwala. Moreover, teams have stopped the production of several food points, production units, water filtration plants and factories by serving Emergency Prohibition Orders.

The PFA discarded approximately 1,100kg adulterated pepper, 500kg mango, 220kg sweets, 950 pieces of Kulfi, 2,600kg salt and sugar, 120litre cream, 170kg fake desi ghee, 42 cartons of toffees, 2,850 packets of gutka, 43kg Chinese salt, 44kg yogurt, 1,00litre water contaminated milk, loose colour, 110litre beverages and other food products during raid. The teams also confiscated three mixing machines and two grinders which were being used for the manufacturing of adulterated food in two factories in South Punjab. The authority served notices on approximately 3,000 food premises for bringing improvement as per Food Act 2011.