Telangana food safety officials seized 110 kg of sev and 40 litres of oil from Karmanghat unit Ashoksingh Foods on July 24, 2026, citing licence fraud, suspected synthetic colours, and hygiene failures.
M/s Ashoksingh Foods, a food unit in Karmanghat, Hyderabad, was found manufacturing sev while holding only a retailer registration obtained through the Tatkal process, a violation of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 (FSSA). Telangana Food Safety Department officers raided the premises on July 24, 2026, seized 110 kg of sev and 40 litres of cooking oil, and sent samples to a laboratory for analysis.
The five-W picture: Telangana Food Safety Officers inspected Ashoksingh Foods at Karmanghat on the afternoon of July 24, 2026. The unit had declared itself a retailer when obtaining its Tatkal registration, which carries lighter compliance requirements than a manufacturer licence under FSSA. Inspectors found the unit was actively producing sev, a fried chickpea-flour snack that is a staple in Indian households and street food. Beyond the registration fraud, officers flagged suspected synthetic food colours in the product, repeated reuse of cooking oil, unsafe food handling, and poor sanitation at the facility. The seizure was carried out under FSSA provisions, and further regulatory action depends on laboratory results.
What changed, and why it matters
The Tatkal registration route under FSSA is meant for small retailers who sell pre-packaged food, not for units that cook, fry, and produce snacks at scale. When a business misrepresents its category during registration, it sidesteps the stricter manufacturing licence requirements: more rigorous hygiene audits, mandatory food safety management systems, and clearer labelling obligations that would, among other things, require disclosure of colouring agents.
Synthetic food colours are the detail most relevant to clean-label consumers. FSSAI permits a defined list of synthetic colours in snack foods under Food Safety and Standards (Food Products Standards and Food Additives) Regulations, 2011, but only within specified limits and only when declared on the label. A unit operating without a proper manufacturer licence has no legal obligation to print an ingredient list, which means buyers have no way to know what colours, if any, were used. The inspectors described the colours as "suspected" synthetic, meaning laboratory confirmation is still pending.
Repeated reuse of cooking oil is a separate concern. When oil is heated multiple times, it degrades into compounds including polar compounds, trans fats, and aldehydes. FSSAI's guidelines on Total Polar Compounds (TPC) set a 25 percent TPC limit for frying oils, beyond which the oil must be discarded. Whether the oil seized from Ashoksingh Foods crossed that threshold will be determined by the lab analysis.
The Karmanghat raid is part of a broader pattern of Telangana food safety enforcement that has accelerated through 2025 and 2026, targeting small manufacturing units that supply local markets, street vendors, and kirana stores. These units rarely appear on e-commerce platforms, so their products reach consumers without any digital paper trail.
What buyers and home cooks should do
Sev is a genuinely simple food: chickpea flour (besan), water, salt, and oil are all it needs. The presence of synthetic colours in sev is a marketing choice, not a functional one. Colour makes the product look more uniform and visually appealing, but it adds nothing to flavour or shelf life.
When buying packaged sev, check the ingredient list for colour entries. FSSAI-compliant manufacturers must list permitted colours by their INS number or name, for example "Tartrazine (INS 102)" or "Sunset Yellow FCF (INS 110)". If a packet has no ingredient list at all, that is itself a red flag: FSSAI mandates ingredient declaration on all packaged foods sold by manufacturers.
For loose sev bought from local shops or street stalls, the sourcing is harder to verify. A few practical checks: sev that is uniformly bright yellow or orange, with a colour that does not fade when rubbed between fingers, is more likely to contain synthetic colour. Natural besan gives sev a pale golden to light yellow colour. Asking the vendor where the sev is made and whether it carries an FSSAI licence number is reasonable, and a vendor who cannot answer either question is worth avoiding.
Home-made sev is straightforward. Besan, a pinch of salt, ajwain or cumin, a little oil in the dough, and a sev press are all that is needed. Frying in fresh oil at around 170 degrees Celsius produces a crisp result without any additive. For those who prefer buying ready-made, brands that carry a manufacturer FSSAI licence number on the pack and list only besan, oil, salt, and spices in the ingredient declaration are the cleanest options available in the Indian market right now.
The laboratory results from the Karmanghat seizure have not been released as of July 26, 2026. FSSAI has not published a formal notice or penalty order related to this case yet. Further action, which could include cancellation of the Tatkal registration and prosecution under FSSA Section 59 (unsafe food) or Section 63 (operating without a licence), will follow once the analysis is complete.