Adulterated sweets, oil seized from Varanasi, Gorakhpur shops

Varanasi/Gorakhpur (Uttar Pradesh), Oct.23 (ANI): Authorities in Varanasi and Gorakhpur have raided shops and seized adulterated sweets and oil ahead of the Hindu festival of lights, Diwali.

The adulterated sweets have been sent to a laboratory for testing.

"We had received a complaint that a sweet shop named Vishwanath Sweet Corner was running a sweet factory at their residence on the ground floor and on the third floor. When we raided the area, we seized a huge amount of sweets that were prepared several days ago in extremely unhygienic conditions," said Dhirendra Singh, the magistrate of Varanasi.

Officials destroyed impure sweets worth 8-10 lakh rupees and also warned shopkeepers not to prepare the sweets on the roadside.

Residents praised the officials for conducting the raids.

Meanwhile, in Gorakhpur, police and food department officials seized 10,000 litres of adulterated sesame oil from a unit.

Dairy products like milk, Khoya (sweetened cheese) and, Mawa (treated milk product) form a basic ingredient of many traditional Indian sweets.

Exchanging sweets and gifts are an integral part of Diwali.

It is celebrated in the month of October-November and signifies the victory of good over evil. (ANI)