To curb the use of spurious materials in sweets on Diwali, district health officials raided several confectionaries here and collected samples of sweets and ghee on Friday.
The team also collected samples from the premises of ghee dealers and dairies from where sweet shops buy ghee and milk in bulk.

Dr Bajwa later told reporters that as Gurdaspur and Pathankot districts cater to the sweets demand of neighbouring states Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir, there was a possibility of some dealers using adulterated ingredients in making confectionaries.

He said the health department had collected more than 200 samples during surprise raids and these had been sent to the laboratories.

If the lab tests confirmed adulteration, the respective shops or dealers could face jail and hefty fines. The health team was being assisted by officials of Verka and Milkfed in detecting adulteration, said Dr Bajwa.

On the high quantity of oxytocin injected into dairy cattle, Dr Bajwa said the crackdown on checking the excessive use of the hormone would begin soon.

Dr Bajwa said dealers and sweet shops should obtain their licence to avoid action from health officials and warned that raids would continue even after Diwali.