Chandigarh, Mar 26 (PTI) The Army has rejected the consignment of whole milk powder of the Punjab government’s dairy cooperative, Milkfed, which sells its products under the Verka brand, after its samples were allegedly found not to comply with the prescribed standards.
However, Milkfed Managing Director, Rahul Gupta, said a fact-finding committee will be set up to find out why the milk powder consignment was rejected.
The Milkfed supplies whole milk powder, cheese, flavoured milk, tetra pack milk and other items to the Army.
In a communication to the Ludhiana District Cooperative Milk Producers’ Union (Verka), the officer commanding the Army Service Corps in Jammu rejected around 125 metric tonnes of whole milk powder consignment comprising 58.338 MT and 66.654 MT.
A copy of the communication was also sent to the Chief Director of Purchase, Ministry of Defence.
Milkfed MD Gupta said the state milk cooperative gives utmost priority to the quality of milk and milk products at its plants.
He said milk products are first tested at an NABL-approved laboratory, and then they are offered to the Army, and he asserted that there was no issue with the products.
Gupta said the Milkfed will also get its samples tested at the National Dairy Development Board’s Centre for Analysis and Learning in Livestock and Food (CALF) lab in Gujarat.
Milk product supplies were going to the Army earlier, and they are going now as well, he said.
Meanwhile, opposition parties’ leaders slammed the AAP government over the rejection of the consignment by the Army.
Shiromani Akali Dal leader Bikram Singh Majithia attacked the Bhagwant Mann government over this issue and said the rejection of such a large quantity by the armed forces raises grave concerns over quality control in a state-run institution.
“This is not just a financial loss worth crores of rupees but also a major dent to Punjab’s credibility,” he claimed in a statement.
“The development has exposed the government’s failure, especially when the same milk products continue to be sold to consumers in Punjab. Imagine what has been rejected for our soldiers is being consumed by the people of Punjab. This reflects zero accountability and a complete disregard for public health,” alleged Majithia.
Congress MP Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa also called the rejection of the milk powder consignment by the Army a “major embarrassment” for the Mann government.
“This is not a minor lapse; it reflects a complete failure of quality control and accountability. When it comes to supplies for our armed forces, there can be ZERO compromise. The @PbGovtIndia must answer, who is responsible, and what action will be taken,” Randhawa asked in a post on X. PTI CHS VSD HIG HIG
This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.