VMC said in a statement that they have seized 1,400 litres of mild fat of Tapan Dairy and Food, and Deep brand from dealers on Sama-Savli road in Vadodara.

The samples have been sent for tests at the Food and Drub Laboratory in Gandhinagar while the shop and other branches of the brand have been sealed across the state.

“We were tipped off about the sale of fat under a brand name, which was misleading the consumers. The product was sold as mild fat, but appeared milk fat to the customers. Besides, we are also doubtful about the quality of the product. That’s why why we have sent the samples for tests,” said VMC Deputy Commissioner A O Sharma.

He added: “We had asked our officials to keep a watch on the shop. But they were somehow alerted as raids were carried out at other places as well. They did not turn up for almost two days but some of the marketing people, including one Nilesh Upadhyay, finally turned up at the Vadodara shop and our staff arrested them. We then seized the stock.

We are further investigating the matter with the help of officials from the Food and Drug Laboratory.”

Much needs to be done for the homeless and those living in the slums. Councillor Raji Ravi claims that potable water shortage has been solved to an extent. “Corrugated pipes in the area were replaced with PVC pipes to stop water contamination. The roads which faced water logging were levelled and tarred. Division fund and additional fund from the Corporation were used to carry out these works.”

The councillor says that while roads such as the TD School Road and Govt Higher Secondary School Road have already been repaired, work on some other roads are in progress. She adds that slum development activities including provision for drinking water and development of sanitation and pocket roads within the slum areas were carried out under the Jawaharlal Nehru Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) and Kerala Sustainable Urban Development Project (KSUDP) scheme. “A total of 51 houses were built using BSUP fund,” she says. A number of work tools for labourers were also distributed under KSUDP scheme.

Raji is proud that around 18 pocket roads and bylanes in various areas in the division were by given a new look using interlock bricks. She claims that hers is the first division to carry out this work. This work was included in the development activities of the Corporation. According to the councillor, a lot of basic development work was carried out using the division fund and corporation funds. Anganwadis, a cultural centre building, public library, public and private water connection with taps and replacing existing street lights with Sodium vapour lamps are some of the other development activities carried out in the area.

However, much more needs to be done in this division. The slums cry for attention. Sanitation facilities and other basic amenities need to be improved. Housing is another problem. Dilapidated buildings in the area have to be renovated. People in the area say that water shortage is still prelevant in some areas. Much more needs to be done to prevent waterlogging in the entire division. The resident also demand better transportation facilities.