A man was arrested during a raid at an illegal ginger-garlic paste manufacturing unit in Bandlaguda.

A man was arrested, and over 870 kilograms of adulterated ginger-garlic paste was seized during a raid at an illegal ginger-garlic paste manufacturing unit operating under the name FK Food Product in Patel Nagar, Bandlaguda on Tuesday (June 3).

The accused was identified as Mohammed Faisal, 44, a resident of Patel Nagar, who was involved in the illicit preparation and sale of chemically adulterated ginger-garlic paste to general stores as well as directly to customers in the area. Officials found that Faisal was operating the unit from his residence, manufacturing the paste using harmful additives such as Titanium Dioxide and Mono Citrate, which are banned in food production under the guidelines of the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI).

The operation, carried out by the South-East Zone Task Force team and Bandlaguda Police, also led to the seizure of four kilograms of Titanium Dioxide, 16 kilograms of Mono Citrate, and four kilograms of turmeric powder used to enhance the colour of the product, all worth ₹1.4 lakh. Further investigation is underway.

The paste was manufactured using high levels of additives such as Titanium Dioxide (E171) and Monosodium Citrate (E331a).

FSSAI India regulations allow their use under specific conditions, including good manufacturing practices and limited use levels.

In India, the permissible limit of Titanium dioxide is generally 1% by total weight and Monosodium citrate must have minimum purity of 96.0%.

The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC -International Agency for Research on Cancer / World Health Organization) has classified inhaled TiO₂ as a possibly carcinogenic to humans.

This operation led to the seizure of:

4 kgs of Titanium Dioxide

16 kgs of Monosodium Citrate

4 kgs of turmeric powder (artificial coloring).