Gopalganj: A mobile court conducted a raid on a factory producing adulterated jaggery in Kotalipara upazila of the district on Saturday afternoon. The operation took place in the Kalabari area of the upazila, where authorities seized 15 maunds of substandard jaggery that was being manufactured with harmful ingredients.
According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, the factory, owned by Chayan Sarkar, was found using low-quality and hazardous substances instead of traditional date or sugarcane juice to make jaggery. The seized jaggery contained a mix of hydrose, soda, non-food grade industrial dyes, artificial flavors, spoiled sweet leftovers, and flour. Additionally, insects were discovered inside each of the production drums.
The raid was led by Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) and Executive Magistrate Sagufta Haque, who was accompanied by Tungipara Upazila Agricultural Marketing Officer Md. Zakir Hossain and members of the Bhangarhat Naval Investigation Center. During the operation, the factory owner, Chayan Sarkar, was fined Taka 50,000 under the Agricultural Marketing Act for violating food safety standards. The confiscated jaggery was subsequently destroyed to prevent it from entering the market.
UNO Sagufta Haque emphasized the severity of the issue, stating, “Jaggery was being made here in an extremely unhygienic and unsanitary environment, posing a direct threat to public health.”