Tukaram Mundhe in action again | FDA busts expiry date racket, seizes Maggi, Lay’s, Kurkure in Navi Mumbai | Today’s news
A suspected food packaging fraud involving alteration of expiry dates was detected in Navi Mumbai under Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Tukaram Mundhe, with officials seizing products from brands including Maggi and Lay’s, the FDA said on Monday.
Following the operation, the FDA suspended the license of Sadhana Enterprises, which operates in the TTC industrial area in Turbha.
Expiry dates, food labels allegedly falsified
The seized supplies included potato crisps and snacks such as Lay’s, Kurkure variants and Fun Flips, along with Maggi Masala and Atta Noodles. Ready-to-eat and ready-to-cook food products were also among the seized items, according to the FDA.
The operation was jointly conducted by the FDA and the Navi Mumbai Police Crime Branch between August 24 and 29.
During inspections, officials found that production dates and use-by dates or use-by dates printed on food packages had been removed and replaced.
The FDA also found that the original ingredient and nutritional information labels had been replaced with fresh stickers. The entire warehouse was subsequently repackaged, the department said.
FDA faced setbacks in Bombay HC for enforcement action
Meanwhile, the Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration faced setbacks in two enforcement cases in the Bombay High Court, which criticized the regulator for acting with “undue haste” and taking a “pedantic instead of a pragmatic view”.
A court directed the FDA to withdraw its order suspending the operation of five restaurants at the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) premises in the Bandra-Kurla complex after a fresh inspection found that the restaurants were 88% compliant with food safety rules. A bench of Acting Chief Justice Ravindra Ghuge and Justice Gautam Ankhad said the restaurants could reopen, while asking the FDA to issue a fresh notice to the MCA and grant it a hearing on its contract with M/s Shirke Infrastructure, which operated the restaurants.
The court warned against taking contemptuous action against the officials, saying, “However, despite FDA making it clear, it has disobeyed our order and has taken a pedantic view instead of a pragmatic one. We are tired of constantly admonishing departments and officers. Now is the time to issue stern orders. We will issue contemptuous action against the officers concerned. Let them convince us or go to jail.”
In a separate case, the FDA has withdrawn its order revoking the license to sell drugs to a shipping and handling facility of Cipla Pharma & Life Sciences Ltd in Wadki, Pune. The license was revoked effective August 27 due to violations related to the packaging and recall of Reactin Plus tablets.
The court said the FDA had acted “haughtily” and that its order was “contrary to the principles of natural justice”, questioning the regulator’s handling of the case.
(With inputs from news agency PTI)
