Dishonest traders market adulterated foods in Ramadan

Adulterated foods mainly vermicelli (semai), ghee (butter oil) and noodles are being pushed into commodity markets in the capital and the rest of the country by a section of dishonest traders and manufacturers, market sources said.
A syndicate of dishonest businessmen have been manufacturing spurious vermicelli (semai) in different makeshift factories in dirty and unhygienic locations in and around the capital city.  These factories also produce various festive food items including ghee, noodles.
Despite punitive actions taken by law enforcers often, the dishonest manufacturers and traders continue to run their business changing factory locations and changing the brand names of their produce.
These harmful unhealthy items are being widely marketed for the consumers during the holy month of Ramadan, especially ahead of the upcoming Eid-ul-Fitr festival.

The manufacture of this harmful item continues mainly in Ramadan as the demand increases, creating scope for windfall profit for the unscrupulous traders.Every year many people suffer from different intestinal diseases after taking this unhealthy vermicelli using dough prepared by the workers who use their feet in random.
These unhealthy and low quality items are supplied to different markets across the country including departmental stores and supershops in the capital.
Meanwhile, a mobile court at Savar in Dhaka has fined a factory owner Tk 3 lakh for making semai by mixing fabric dyes in a dirty and unhealthy environment.
Besides, goods worth Tk 10 lakh have been destroyed, said RAB-4 Executive Magistrate Mohammad Anisur Rahman.
The sentence was handed down after a raid on a factory called Shahana Food Products Limited in Savar's Deogaon area recently.
Anisur Rahman said the factory had been producing two types of semai, colorless and colorful. These were supplied to the market under the brand name Al Muslim Semai.
Golam Rabbani, the owner of the factory, was fined Tk 3 lakh for making adulterated semai in an unhealthy environment by mixing dyes used in clothes.
Besides, goods worth Tk 10 lakh and adulterated semai were seized and destroyed. "
Another mobile court fined Rubel Hawlader, a factory owner Tk 10,000 for making adulterated semai at Sharankhola in Bagerhat.
Sardar Mostafa Shahin, Upazila Nirbahi Officer, collected the fine by organizing a mobile court at Kathpatti of Upazila Sadar Rayenda Bazar last Saturday.
It was reliably learned that such phony food factories first grew up in the old Dhaka areas like, Lalbagh, Hazaribagh, Keraniganj and Kamrangirchar, but later spread to Kadamtally, Shampur, Jatrabari, Demra and Mirpur. Now such counterfeit factories are found at different nook and cranny of the capital.
Abdul Jabbar Mandal, assistant director of the National Consumer Protection Department said that due to the coronavirus situation, we are conducting operations in the markets on holidays like other days of the week to maintain social distance, control prices and prevent adulterated food.