We had received complaints that masoor dal (red lentil) was being processed using white talcum powder, which is unsafe for human consumption. Acting on a tip off from a secret source, a team from our Enforcement Branch’s Food and Edible Oil Section, led by sectional OC Inspector Jugal Kishore Daw, conducted a raid at a dal mill in Ultadanga assisted by Sub Inspectors Asish Kumar Sen and Abu Akhtar Ansari.
Upon questioning, mill owner Vishal Jaiswal, a resident of Chinar Park, was unable either to produce any documents regarding the processing method, or to provide satisfactory answers about it. Instead, he admitted that he had been running the business for wrongful gain. Based on this statement, he was arrested last evening, and SI Ansari seized as sample exhibits 347 bags of Masoor dal weighing about 30 kg each, and a plastic bag of white talcum powder weighing about 29 kg.
Our, Reporter in Chief
R. Manoj Kumar Sharma
Siliguri City, West Bengal