Delhi Police on Wednesday seized over 2,600 litres of adulterated ghee in the city and nearby Haryana and arrested two manufacturers allegedly involved in the process, an officer said.
The seizure followed a tip-off that led to raids at at least two godowns on Tuesday, police said, adding that the adulterated ghee was packaged under labels of many popular brands.
Police seized a total of 2,651 litres of spurious ghee, 2,241 litres from a godown in northwest Delhi’s Budh Vihar, owned by 38-year-old Rakesh Garg, and another 410 litres from a godown in Jind, Haryana, linked to another manufacturer, Mukesh.
The unit in Jind has been sealed, and the alleged manufacturers have been booked at the Crime Branch Police Station.
The spurious ghee was intended to meet the rising demand for the ingredient ahead of Diwali and other upcoming festivals.
According to police, the suspects allegedly blended low-quality vanaspati ghee and refined oil to imitate pure ghee, adding chemical-based flavoring agents, synthetic colours, and other hazardous substances to the mixture.
“The adulterated ghee was packed in containers of well-known brands and sold at wholesale rates to local distributors, dairies, and retail outlets,” the officer said.
The accused revealed that the adulterated ghee cost around Rs 200 per litre to produce and was sold to wholesalers for approximately Rs 350 per litre, police said, adding that the Food Safety Department of the Delhi government was involved in the raids.
Garg has allegedly been running the illegal trade for the past two years and had recently expanded it on a larger scale.
Mukesh, who ran the manufacturing unit, was allegedly supplying adulterated ghee across Haryana and the Delhi-NCR region,” the officer said.