- AAP leader Raghav Chadha warned of India's major health crisis: food adulteration in Rajya Sabha
- He cited milk, spices, oils, and packaged foods containing harmful chemicals and misleading claims
- Chadha urged stronger FSSAI, stricter penalties, and a public recall system for adulterated products
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Raghav Chadha on Wednesday warned of what he called India's "biggest health crisis: food adulteration." Speaking in the Rajya Sabha, he said that "poison is being sold in the market under the fake label of purity," alleging that milk, spices, edible oils, packaged foods and beverages contain unsafe additives, harmful chemicals, high levels of saturated fat, sugar or salt, along with misleading claims suggesting they offer health or energy benefits.
He later posted the same concerns on X, listing examples of adulteration:
- "Urea in milk
- Oxytocin in vegetables
- Caustic soda in paneer
- Brick powder in spices
- Yellow dye in honey
- Steroids in poultry
- Detergent in ice cream"
Milk Adulteration In India
Raising the issue in Parliament, Chadha said, "Research shows 71 per cent of milk samples contain urea, and 64 per cent contain neutralisers like sodium bicarbonate. There is not as much production of milk in this country as the amount of milk being sold here."
He added that oxytocin is a harmful chemical that can cause dizziness, headaches, heart failure, infertility and cancer.
One In Four Food Samples Found Adulterated
"From 2014-15 to 2026, 25 per cent of all samples tested have been found to be adulterated - which means one in every four was adulterated, causing so many people to fall sick, go to the hospital, and even lose their lives," he said.
Indian Spices With "Cancer-Causing Pesticides" Banned Abroad
Chadha also pointed to Indian food products banned internationally, saying, "Two of this country's biggest garam masala companies were banned in the US, UK and across Europe because they contained cancer-causing pesticides. Those same spices are still being sold in India in large quantities. We are forced to consume these products."
Raghav Chadha Suggests Corrective Measures
Urging the government to take urgent action, the AAP MP recommended the following steps:
1. Strengthening the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) by increasing manpower and upgrading laboratory testing facilities.
2. Introducing stricter penalties and fines to deter offenders.
3. Creating a public recall mechanism under which adulterated products are named, publicly flagged and immediately withdrawn from the market.
