Fake Paneer Racket Uncovered

By Sulagna Halder

Noida, 1 July 2025:

Police and food safety authorities confirmed that a large scale food safety operation in Noida has uncovered an interstate racket that, over the previous six months, sold chemically adulterated paneer to restaurants and vendors throughout Delhi NCR. 

After receiving a tip late Friday, police stopped a Mahindra pickup truck in Sector 63 that was transporting about 1,400 kg of fake paneer. Three people were arrested after the driver, Gulfam (32), led detectives to a covert manufacturing facility in Sahajpura village. They were Guddu alias Rish (36), Iqlakh (30), and Naved (20). Afsar, the fifth suspect, is still at large.

The intricate method used to imitate real paneer was disclosed by the police. To create the appearance of real cottage cheese, industrial bean starch was boiled, treated with whitener and poster color to give it a milky tone, curdled with an enigmatic blue chemical, then pressed and packaged. 

According to reports, a second formula produced blocks sold for Rs 180–220 per kg using milk powder, palmolin oil, and additional chemicals. This is significantly less than the market prices, which are almost double. There are major health concerns because the racket provided tainted paneer to street vendors and small restaurants in Delhi and Noida. Food safety officials confirmed that samples have been sent to a laboratory for in depth analysis and referred to the chemical laced product as a "serious health hazard."

Sections 274, 275, and 318(4) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita have been used to register a case at the Sector 63 police station. Currently, investigators are tracking down eateries, suppliers, and possible partners in the illegal supply chain. Citing numerous instances of adulteration, Noida food inspectors have also requested that Aligarh authorities examine suspicious paneer shipments. The controversy draws attention to the region's pervasive paneer contamination. A startling 83 percent of paneer samples failed quality tests, with 40 percent being declared unsafe, according to recent inspections in Noida and Greater Noida. This trend has worried regulators and consumers alike.

Experts in public health caution that consuming adulterants such as chemicals, starch, and poster colors can cause liver and kidney damage as well as digestive problems. Now, authorities are calling for more stringent regulation and consumer awareness, including basic tests like iodine drops on paneer to identify starch. The bust serves as a clear warning about the dangers of dishonest food adulteration. While officials pledge increased surveillance and harsher penalties for offenders, citizens are encouraged to support ongoing enforcement efforts and buy paneer from reliable sources.