Police, FDA bust major inter-district 'synthetic milk' racket in Maharashtra; 13 held

Pune, Jul 6 (PTI) Police and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have busted an inter-district milk adulteration racket, arresting 13 people and seizing material worth more than Rs 2 crore in Maharashtra's Pune district, officials said on Monday. The Pune rural police and FDA conducted raids in Manchar, believed to be the main hub of the racket, and at Akluj, Ahilyanagar, Sillod and Sangli, they said. Investigations have revealed that the accused allegedly mixed around 500 litres of chemically prepared synthetic milk with every 1,000 litres of genuine milk before supplying it to the market. Officials said the synthetic milk was prepared using chemicals, milk powder and shampoo, among other ingredients. The joint operation was carried out under the guidance of Pune Rural Superintendent of Police Sandeep Singh Gill and FDA Commissioner Tukaram Mundhe. Raids were conducted by a 30-member team of the Pune Rural Local Crime Branch, along with more than 20 FDA staffers. FDA officials said the investigation expanded to Pune, Solapur, Jalna, Ahilyanagar, Thane, Jalgaon and Dharashiv districts. "We have been working to bust this nexus over the last two days after gathering intelligence and strong evidence for nearly a month. The investigation is still underway," FDA Commissioner Mundhe told reporters. Mundhe said FDA and Maharashtra police launched a joint operation after receiving intelligence on June 11 and carried out extensive surveillance before acting. He said he had discussed the matter with Director General of Police Sadanand Date, following which Pune Rural Superintendent of Police Sandeep Singh Gill worked closely with the FDA during the investigation. The commissioner alleged that the racket operated from Manchar, where the prime accused, Sushant Hinge, along with his adviser Sandeep Lodha, guided the formulation of synthetic milk using skimmed milk powder, permit powder, emulsifiers, shampoo, palm oil, detergents and other chemicals. According to Mundhe, the accused approached dairy farmers and persuaded them to mix synthetic milk with genuine milk by promising higher quantity and improved quality. He alleged that the adulterated milk was either mixed with regular milk or supplied separately through milk collection centres, chilling plants and packaging units. The FDA chief said the network had expanded its operations to Pune, Solapur, Jalna, Ahilyanagar, Thane, Jalgaon and Dharashiv districts, adding that investigators have contacted food business operators, milk collection centres and farmers. In some cases, farmers were found manufacturing synthetic milk, while grocery traders allegedly supplied chemicals used in the process. Mundhe said authorities seized 1,385 kg of milk powder from Navkar Distributor, operated by Hinge. He said the FDA conducted nine raids, collected 39 samples and seized material worth Rs 1.47 crore during the operation. The commissioner said more than 20,000 litres of suspected adulterated milk was destroyed on the spot during the raids. He said action has also been initiated against Jai Shriram Collection Centre, and an FIR has been registered at Manchar police station. The FDA has invoked stringent legal provisions, including charges relating to organised crime, use of poisonous chemicals and manufacture of unsafe food products, he added. "The FDA has suspended five licences and ordered four business establishments to cease operations, citing grave risks to public health. Navkar Distributor, Hemant Corporation, Peersai Milk, Bhairavnath, Jai Shriram Dairy, Matoshri Dairy, Gurudutt Chilling Centre, Sahyadri Dairy and Anandyogi Milk Collection Centre are the establishments facing action," Mundhe said. The commissioner said the FDA has also launched a large-scale investigation into milk powder manufacturing units across the Pune, Nashik and Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar revenue divisions to ascertain possible links with major dairy operators. Mundhe said investigators have found indications that two major organised gangs involved in synthetic milk production are active in Maharashtra and that intelligence gathering against both networks is continuing. PTI SPK ND ARU BNM