New Delhi [India], October 2 (ANI): In a major crackdown on curbing distribution of adulterated food, Delhi Police's crime branch busted three illegal manufacturing units of adulterated desi ghee operating in North-East Delhi, officials said on Thursday.

According to an official statement, the crime branch, in collaboration with Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), conducted coordinated raids at Shiv Vihar, Karawal Nagar, and Mustafabad, resulting to the seizure of 1,625 kg of adulterated desi ghee and the arrest of six people.

The arrested have been identified as Shafiq, Shakir, Sharukh, Jamaluddin, and Yusuf, along with his son Mehboob. The police said that the accused mixed Dalda, vegetable oil and other chemicals into the ghee, which was then sold to various people in the market.

'In the first interrogation, we got to know that he (Shafiq) has been doing this for the past 8-10 years. Per month, he used to sell around 400 tins of ghee per month. Each tin was 15 kg,' Crime Branch Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Vikram Singh told ANI.

'The Crime Branch, in collaboration with FSSAI, conducted raids at multiple locations, seizing 1,625 kg of adulterated ghee from three locations... We have arrested six people in this case. One is Shafiq from Mustafabad. The other is Yusuf Malik, and his son is Mehboob. Shakir, Sharukh, and Jamaluddin were arrested at the third location... They mixed Dalda and vegetable oil and added chemicals to it...,' he added.

Earlier, ahead of the festivities, the Delhi police seized 693 kilograms of illegal firecrackers of 42 different brands and apprehended one person.

According to the police, acting on secret information received by the Crime Branch, the Delhi Police conducted a raid in the Matiala village area of Delhi. It apprehended one person, a 52-year-old resident of the village, Dilbagh Singh.

During the operation, the Police recovered illegal firecrackers from the ground floor of the premises, which were being misused under the cover of an ice cream manufacturing unit. This illegal stock was kept under highly unsafe conditions in a residential area, posing a serious risk to public safety, as per the police.

The investigation is currently underway to trace the supply chain of banned firecrackers. The case has been registered under Sections 223(B)/288 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Section 9(B) of the Explosives Act. (ANI)