Initial tests suggest ‘plastic rice’ allegations incorrect: FDCA Gujarat

Ahmedabad

Amid the concerns and speculations regarding alleged large scale sale of ‘plastic containing China-made artificial’ rice in Gujarat, the state Food and Drugs Control Administration (FDCA) today said that the initial investigations indicate that the allegations were not correct.

The FDCA team had collected six samples of such rice two days ago from Navsari,Surat and Sanand (Ahmedabad) and sent it for laboratory testing.

FDCA Deputy Commissioner Sathish N Thaker told newsmen here today that though the final lab report would come after 20 days, the initial investigations indicate towards absence of plastic or any such thing in the seized rice stock.

‘The final report will have the final say but so far as our initial investigations are concerned it seems that the allegations are not correct. The China connection is also not comprehensible as we don’t import rice from there,’ Mr. Thaker said on the sidelines of a workshop on eradication of malnutrition through fortified food.

Meanwhile, Sources in the FDCA team that conducted raids to seize the rice also narrated the same story. They indicated that the rice may be of inferior quality but it did not look like being artificial.

‘The low price of the rice had triggered the story of it being artificial china made rice,’ the sources who conducted primary test on the sample claimed.