1,280kg meat of sick, dead chicken seized

LAHORE: The Punjab Food Authority (PFA) has sealed six meat shops and caught two trucks fully loaded with hundreds of kilograms of unhygienic meat of emaciated, sick and dead chicken here on Thursday.

A special raid was conducted under supervision of PFA Director General Irfan Memon near Tollinton Market on a tip-off by the vigilance cell of PFA. The meat safety teams foiled an attempt to supply germs-infested meat which was being carried from nearby areas of Lahore to the City. While broadening the operation upon the information of the drivers, PFA conducted raids on Tollinton Market against the sellers where that meat was to be supplies. The authority sealed Tariq Chicken, Raju Chicken Sale Centre, Naveed Chicken, Adnan Chicken Shop, Qasim Chicken and Ali Hajveri Chicken Whole Sale Centre over their involvement in the wicked practice.

The PFA DG said that PFA seized 1,280kg meat and set it ablaze after putting it into an incinerator according to the eco-friendly policy. A case was registered against two accused. The DI also asked the citizens to avoid buying already slaughtered chicken and only buy fresh meat. On the other hand, PFA sealed Amir Foods in Khanewal and Muhammad Ali Masala Factory in Vehari over failure of the samples taken from there. There was adulteration and wrong labelling on the products besides unhygienic conditions there.

PFA Rajanpur team shut down Nasir Sweets Shop due to using germs-infested sugar syrup, presence of washroom in the processing area and for failing to meet the hygienic working environment. The provincial food regulatory body also closed down Anus Karyana Store in Bahawalnagar and Yasir Karyana Store in Layyah for selling adulterated spices and not taking measures to control pests. In Mianwali, a food authority team sealed Hasarvi Karyana and General Store for selling gutka despite ban on its sale.

Muhammad Asif Karyana Store was also sealed in Khushab after gutka packets were found inside the shop. The raiding teams witnessed the worst condition of hygiene. An enforcement team of PFA Rawalpindi raided Pakistan Khana House and sealed it for using rancid oil, poor cleanliness arrangements and not complying with the Punjab Pure Food Regulations 2018. Moreover, the PFA team closed down Noor Yousaf Foods in Gujranwala and sealed it for using rusty vessels to store stinky fish. A team of PFA sealed Sadiq Mobile Centre due to selling expired food items and failing to meet hygienic working environment.

The provincial food regulatory body sealed six food points and punished numerous shopkeepers with Rs61,000 fine over multiple violations in Faisalabad division. According to details, PFA shut down three sweets shops for using non-food graded colours and expired fruits (muraba), an abundance of insects and the worst condition of hygiene.

PFA dairy safety team sealed two dairy points over violation of food labelling and failure to produce medicals. A team of PFA raided Chaudhry Food Industry and sealed it for using starch in the manufacturing of products and poor storage system.

PSCA: The Punjab Safe Cities Authority (PSCA) teams have been dispatched for security during the cricket match between Pakistan and Bangladesh. Cameras enabled with the artificial intelligence capabilities would be installed there and everyone entering the stadium would be screened through the cameras in consultation with Rawalpindi police and Pakistan Army.