FDA Busts Milk Adulteration Racket in Mahape MIDC, 4,710 Litres Seized and Destroyed

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has busted a major milk adulteration network operating out of the Mahape MIDC area in Navi Mumbai, leading to the seizure and destruction of adulterated dairy products worth lakhs of rupees, according to an official release by the Thane district administration on Monday.

Acting on confidential intelligence, a special FDA squad conducted a raid on M/s P.K. Dairy on August 19. During the operation, officials caught an accused individual, Shivendra Shyamlal Jaiswal, actively diluting milk inside a tanker using a mixture of skimmed milk powder and chilled water in collusion with dairy owner Pradeep Kamlesh Yadav.

According to the official release, the adulteration process involved mixing one kilogram of skimmed milk powder with eight to ten litres of chilled water using a plunger. The resulting diluted mixture was then supplied as pure cow or buffalo milk to several local dairies and vendor outlets across Thane, Kopri, Airoli, Digha, and Ghansoli.

Authorities immediately shut down M/s P.K. Dairy after discovering that it was operating without a valid food safety license. To safeguard public health, FDA officials seized and destroyed 4,710 litres of adulterated and suspect milk, valued at Rs 1,85,780, across multiple raided establishments.

In addition to the liquid milk, FDA enforcement teams confiscated 129.5 kg of paneer, 473 kg of skimmed milk powder, and 88.4 kg of cream during the inspections.

Following the crackdown, an FIR was registered at Turbhe police station on August 22 against 15 individuals and entities connected to the racket, including the owners of two dairies and various recipient vendor outlets. Authorities have also initiated the formal process to cancel the food licenses of all implicated establishments.