Flouting norms, the Food and Civil Supplies Department has stocked vegetable oil and green gram past the expiry dates for supplying to Public Distribution Shops in the district under the Anna Bhagya Scheme.
Speaking with The Hindu on Tuesday, District Food Safety Officer R.S. Biradar said that based on a complaint both the Department godowns on the outskirts of the city has been raided and the expired stocks were seized in the first week of July. The matter had been reported to the Deputy Commissioner Ujjwalkumar Ghosh. He directed the concerned authorities to immediately stop the distribution of expired stocks from last week.
Around 70,000 expired vegetable oil packets and around 525 kg of green grams with expired dates were seized. Mr. Biradar said the manufactured date mentioned on a few oil packets was December 2016 and on others it was February 2017, valid for four months from the date of packing.
Meanwhile, the Divisional Food Laboratory in its report had recorded the oil as sub-standard as the acid value of tested oil is 1.02%. As per the Food Safety and Standards Authority (FSSAI) the acid value should be less than 0.5%, Mr. Biradar added.
Similarly, the samples of green gram stocked in godowns were also recorded as sub-standard. The grains contain 6.97% weevilled grain and 1.86% foreign matter, and do not conform to the standards.
Vijayanand Diggikar, Assistant Director for Food and Civil Supplies, speaking to The Hindu over the phone said that though the products were expired and lab reports clearly confirmed the samples of vegetable oil and green gram were sub-standard, the samples would be sent to the Food Laboratory in Hyderabad for tests.
Based on the lab reports, senior officials would take a further decision.
