Hyderabad, Sept. 24 -- Telangana's food and drug regulator has inspected 208 food and pharmacy establishments since August and cancelled 30 licences over violations ranging from unhygienic premises to the sale of analogue paneer and substandard medicines.

Avinash Mohanty, commissioner of the Telangana Standards Authority for Food and Essential Drugs (TG SAFE), told The Times of India that the crackdown began after the agency was formed in August by merging the state's Food Safety and Drugs Control departments.

In one recent drive targeting sweets, khoya, paneer and other dairy products, TG SAFE inspected 46 establishments, suspended the licences of four over serious violations, and seized more than 19 tonnes of material. The state has a...