In a recent incident, a company in Rajasthan has been fined ₹2.20 lakh, and a re-packaging company in Chhidarwala, Uttarakhand, has been fined ₹1 lakh due to excessive iodine content found in mustard oil. The Food Safety Department’s team from Pauri collected a sample of the oil in March 2019 from Swargashram Jonk for testing.
On March 17, 2019, a food safety officer from Srinagar took a sample of 200 ml of Shri Jindal Kachchi Ghani Gold mustard oil from Rasbihari Agarwal’s Sudarshan Ayurveda in the Swargashram Jonk area for analysis. The sample was sent to the Government Food and Drug Testing Laboratory in Rudrapur. The test results revealed that the iodine content in the mustard oil was higher than permissible limits.
The department provided both the retailer and the manufacturer another opportunity to have the oil tested at a different laboratory, but no application was made. Consequently, the department filed a case in the court of the adjudicating officer/ADM Pauri. In court, the retailer claimed that he is merely a wholesale vendor and had sourced the oil from K.C. Oil Mill and Traders for re-packaging. The oil was reportedly supplied by GRG Oil Agro Food Park, Industrial Vihar, Ganganagar.
The court found that while the retailer was cleared due to presenting valid purchase bills, both the manufacturing company and the re-packaging company were held responsible for failing to maintain oil quality.
According to District Designated Officer Pauri, A.S. Rawat, the court ruled that Shri Jindal Kachchi Ghani Gold mustard oil was substandard under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, and Regulations, 2011. A fine of ₹2.20 lakh was imposed on the manufacturer GRG Oil Agro Food Park, and ₹1 lakh on the re-packaging company K.C. Oil Mill and Traders in Chhidarwala, Rishikesh. Failure to pay the fines within 15 days will result in recovery actions similar to land revenue.
