FDA Busts Milk Adulteration Racket in Mahape Supplying Thane, 15 Booked
An FIR has been registered against 15 individuals and dairy establishments after the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) uncovered a major milk adulteration racket operating out of the Mahape MIDC area that supplied spurious milk to Thane, Kopri, Airoli, Digha, and Ghansoli.
The case (FIR No. 435/2026) was registered at the Turbhe police station on August 22, following an FDA raid conducted at P.K. Dairy in Mahape on August 19.
According to the FDA, 34-year-old Shivendra Shyamlal Jaiswal was caught adulterating milk inside an Eicher milk tanker in connivance with dairy owner Pradeep Kamlesh Yadav. Investigators found that one kilogram of skimmed milk powder was mixed with eight to ten litres of chilled water and homogenised using a plunger. The resulting mixture was subsequently distributed and sold as pure cow and buffalo milk to dairies across Thane and nearby localities.
P.K. Dairy was found to be operating without a food safety licence and was shut down immediately. The FDA has also initiated the process of cancelling the food licences of the establishments implicated in the racket.
During the drive, the FDA seized and destroyed a total of 4,710 litres of adulterated and suspected milk valued at Rs 1.85 lakh. At P.K. Dairy alone, authorities destroyed 761 litres of cow and buffalo milk worth Rs 40,558. Additionally, officials seized 473 kg of skimmed milk powder worth Rs 1.60 lakh, 129.5 kg of paneer worth Rs 45,280, and 88.4 kg of cream worth Rs 30,940.
Enforcement actions were extended to other suppliers as well. At Bhaskar Dairy in Mahape, officials seized 548 kg of suspected powder and paneer valued at Rs 1.83 lakh and suspended its licence. At Narayan Dairy in Rabale, 3,648 litres of pasteurised skimmed milk worth Rs 1.24 lakh was destroyed after it was found without laboratory reports. Another 88.4 kg of cream was seized from the Fattesingrao Naik Cooperative Milk Union.
The accused named in the FIR include Jaiswal, Yadav, and Bhaskar Santu Pilani, along with Maharaj Dairy, Vijay Dairy, Shivkailas Dairy, Roopsagar Dairy, Dinesh Dairy, Balaji Dairy, Shuklam Dairy, Shriram Dairy, Vasudev Dairy, Radhakrishna Dairy, Janam Dairy, and Devnarayan Dairy.
The operation was conducted under the directions of FDA Commissioner Tukaram Mundhe, with supervision by Joint Commissioner (Vigilance) Preeti Tipre and Thane Food Joint Commissioner Dr Sachin Jadhav. Dr Jadhav urged citizens to contact the administration's toll-free number if they suspect adulteration in any food product.
