Collected from 'unhygienic' kitchen, sample of sweets passes test

Five days after Sangrur sub divisional magistrate (SDM) Anita Darshi had asked owners of two sweet shops to destroy two quintals of sweets after a surprise visit to their unhygienic kitchens, three out of the four samples collected during the raids cleared the test.

Five days after Sangrur sub divisional magistrate (SDM) Anita Darshi had asked owners of two sweet shops to destroy two quintals of sweets after a surprise visit to their unhygienic kitchens, three out of the four samples collected during the raids cleared the test.

Last week, the SDM, along with officers of the health department, had made surprise visits to several sweet shops and asked the officers to collect samples of 'petha' from two shops as the sweet was prepared in unhygienic conditions. Interestingly, four days after the collection of the samples, three samples taken from Sangrur passed the test and only one sample of Barfi collected from Malerkotla failed.

District health officer (DHO) Surender Singla said, "Only one sample of barfi failed to fulfill the conditions, while two samples of Petha taken from Sangrur passed the test." Questioned about the unhygienic conditions of the kitchen from where the samples were collected, the DHO said, "The owner of the shop has assured us he will maintain cleanliness. Though cleaning of the sewer close to his shop is not in his hands, he has assured us that he will shift the location of his kitchen after Diwali."

He added that sampling of sweets was a routine process and last month, 130 samples were collected out of which 38 failed. Ninety samples were collected from the district in October, the report for which will come in the next few days.

Despite several attempts, Sangrur SDM Anita Darshi could not be contacted for her comment.