Hyderabad: The West Zone Task Force of the Hyderabad police searched two fruit warehouses in Borabanda and seized about 4,800 kg of mangoes artificially ripened with ethylene.
A man named Mohd. Moiz, 40, working as a manager in a fruit warehouse located in HF Nagar, Borabanda was arrested by officials in the first case. During the arrest, the Hyderabad police confiscated 160 trays of mangoes which were artificially ripened. Each tray contained 20 kg of the fruit and several ethylene packets were also seized.
In the second case, Mohd. Sadiq, a 47-year-old fruit businessman from Sanjay Nagar in Borabanda, Hyderabad, was arrested and 80 trays of mangoes, along with sachets of the ripening agent, were seized by the police.
According to officials, a group of fruit suppliers in Hyderabad used to provide fruits to various fruit shops and juice centres, including mangoes this season. However, due to the high demand for fruits, these suppliers are using artificial ripening agents such as ethylene.
This practice violates the guidelines established by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). In addition, the suppliers in Hyderabad placed the ripening material directly on the mangoes, which further breaches the FSSAI guidelines.
According to their statement by the Hyderabad officials, these chemicals can cause serious health issues including skin burns, irritation, inflammation and lung irritation when used in excessive amounts. In addition, inhaling the arsenic present in these mangoes can lead to heavy metal poisoning and other neurological problems.
