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As Pune food poisoning cases pile up, FDA bans varai sale in Maharashtra
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Monday, 03 October, 2011, 08 : 00 AM [IST]
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Irum Khan, Mumbai
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The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Maharashtra, has issued a temporary ban on sale of varai (samo rice) in Maharashtra and appealed to consumers to avoid its consumption, as 200 plus people have taken ill after its consumption in Pune, Solapur, and Kolhapur districts of the state.
Pune FDA assistant commissioner Chadarakant Salunkhe has informed FnB News that the ban will be temporary till the lab reports are out. “We were directionless till now as such a case was new for us. But now testings have started in the right direction to find the cause of food poisoning. Till the time we find the cause, we have called for a complete ban on varai. If the reports indicate a few brands only, then we may recall and destroy those brands and allow other traders to sell varai,” Salunkhe said.
Varai is sold in two forms—one as grain and the other as flour. The FDA has been struggling to find which type of varai and coming from which particular brand was contaminated.
Two traders from Pune – Rohan Bhandari and Sadhuram Tanna from Urli Kanchan area of Pune – have been arrested in this regard. Also, the FDA has put a stop on production in Anand Bhagar Mills in Nashik and Shivshakti Mills in Thane. The FDA has sealed the stock of varai at different wholesale grocery stores in the state.
Varai is an important food grain consumed during Navratra festival as food substitute during fasting. So a ban on varai may lead to a huge economic impact. This was indicated by Mahesh Zagade, commissioner, FDA, Maharashtra, and also the food safety commissioner for the state.
Meanwhile, a survey done by FnB News team in some areas in Mumbai, found that traders were not aware about the ban and that branded varai from different bhagar mills from Nashik was still being sold. Salunkhe admitted that since the incident was just two-day old, not much information had been communicated to the traders. He, however, said that the FDA was taking the help of media and reaching out to wholesalers, traders, retailers and stockists to restrain from selling varai.
The Pune Merchants’ Chamber has, however, sought permission from the FDA to store varai in cold storage as it was likely to get spoilt due to moisture with the ongoing rains in Pune. Ajit Sethia, president of the chambers said that varai was only consumed in Navratra, and post that the demand falls from 100% to 10%. “If there was a delay in the reports from the lab, then the varai would be spoilt in the next four to five days, which could be a loss to the traders.”
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