Officials of Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) on Thursday seized nearly two tonnes of khesari dal which was stocked in a house at Orattukuppai, near Chettipalayam. Known as poor man’s dal, the large stock of pulse was seized by FSSAI naming it as a prohibited item.
The seized low-cost dal was stored in 46 bags, each weighing 42 kg and remaining quantity in parcel bags. The stock was confiscated from a house rented by a team of seven persons who were selling the pulse in villages. However, the FSSAI team could question only one person who was present in the house at the time of raid.
Officials said that khesari dal, which was earlier used as an adulterant for ‘tur dal’ was being sold by the team in the pretext of second grade ‘tur dal’ to villagers. The raid was conducted by a team of food safety officials led by O.L.S. Vijay, designated officer, FSSAI, Coimbatore.
“Sale of khesari dal is prohibited as consumption of the same in large quantities can lead to paralysis and numbness due to its neurotoxic properties. We have sent samples from the seized stock for laboratory examination. Further action will be taken based on the result of laboratory examination,” said an FSSAI official.
The official said that the group was selling khesari dal for Rs. 60 per kg, travelling through villages in two-wheelers. The seized stock is a portion of large volume of the pulse brought to Vellore district from Raipur of Chhattisgarh.
In Tirupur, officials attached to Food Safety and Drug Administration department seized khesari dal from a godown at Karadivavi on Thursday evening.
K. Tamilselvan, designated officer of Food Safety, said that a total of 2.4 tonnes of dal was found inside the building.
The seizure was following a tip-off received by the officials from reliable sources.
The matter is under investigation.
