150 kg of rotten meat seized in Anantnag raids
Arif Rashid
Continuing the intensified drive against adulterated and unsafe meat in Jammu Kashmir, authorities on Friday raided six locations in Anantnag, recovering 150 kilograms of substandard meat unfit for human consumption.
Food Safety Department officials said the meat was stored in unhygienic conditions and lacked mandatory labelling or proof of origin. “The recovered stock was in poor condition, without temperature control, and clearly not fit for sale or consumption. We have initiated legal proceedings against the vendors,” said an official involved in the operation.
The latest seizure comes amid a Valley-wide alarm after over 3,000 kilograms of rotten meat were recovered in the past week from Srinagar, Ganderbal, and Pulwama.
Officials speaking to The ANN said that they have been conducting surprise checks at markets, cold storage units, and roadside stalls to curb the sale of unsafe meat.
Meanwhile, mosques across Kashmir have begun urging worshippers to boycott vendors found selling stale or contaminated meat. At the historic Jamia Masjid in Anantnag, Moulana Ramreez Qadri & Sheikhlul Aalam Masjid Shareef Moulana Issaq Dar condemned the traders involved in the scandal and demanded a complete ban on grinded meat in Kashmir.
“Grinded or minced meat should be banned throughout the Valley. Such products are easily used to conceal stale or contaminated meat from customers. Our health is not for sale, and those who play with public health should be banned from business for life and publicly named,” they said in their Friday sermon, drawing loud agreement from the congregation.
Across Kashmir, the Food Safety Department has also seized 2,500 kababs processed with frozen meat containing unpermitted food colour and 150 kilograms of meatballs (Gushtaba) in Srinagar.
Officials report that as inspections increase, some unscrupulous traders have started dumping rotten meat in marshes, nallahs, and roadside areas to avoid being caught.
Civil society groups and the Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industry have called for “exemplary punishment” for those involved, warning that the incidents may be part of a larger, unregulated supply chain.
“The public must also play its part by reporting suspicious activity. Food safety is a shared responsibility,” an enforcement officer said.
