AMC seals Nikol’s Das Khaman house, collects Jalebi & Undhiyu samples ahead of Uttarayan

The Amdavad Municipal Corporation’s food department has stepped up inspections of food establishments across the city ahead of the Uttarayan festival, collecting 22 food samples and sealing a popular eatery in the Nikol area over hygiene concerns.

During inspections carried out on Tuesday, officials collected 16 samples of jalebi and six samples of undhiyu from various parts of the city for laboratory testing. The action followed routine pre-festival checks aimed at preventing the sale of stale or unsafe food during the festive period.

A well-known outlet, Das Khaman, located opposite Sanidhya Park in Nikol, was sealed after inspectors found unhygienic conditions in its kitchen and storage areas. 

The food department officials reported that large amounts of dirt were found in the kitchen, storeroom and food preparation areas, while food containers were allegedly stored in poor-quality plastic bags. Officials said the conditions posed a serious risk to public health, prompting immediate closure of the unit.

In addition to Nikol, inspections were carried out at sweet and farsan shops in areas including Jodhpur, Gota, Navrangpura, Maninagar, Shahibaug, Kalupur, Madhupura, Amraiwadi, Odhav, Sardarnagar and Indrapuri. The collected samples have been sent to the Public Health Laboratory, with test reports expected within the next two weeks.

Municipal officials noted that, until the laboratory results are received, large quantities of jalebi and undhiyu are likely to be sold across the city during the festive rush. However, preliminary on-the-spot checks conducted using rapid test kits did not detect the presence of artificial colouring in any of the samples.

Samples were collected from several well-known establishments, including Swad Gathiya Rath in Gota, Naveen Chawana and Sweet in Navrangpura, Saurashtra Farsan House in Kalupur, Mahalaxmi Chawana and Sweet Mart in Naranpura, Devras Namkeen and Sweet in Jodhpur, Mehta Sweet in Maninagar, Lucknow Jalebi in Raipur, and Shreeji Khaman House in Madhupura, among others.