Bhubaneswar, Nov. 27 -- Is the milk you drink really safe? What many consumers believe to be pure and nutritious milk is in reality often laced with harmful substances at multiple stages, right from milking to packaging. The extent of adulteration in the state's dairy supply chain is so alarming that it raises serious concerns about public health.

Reports suggest that adulteration begins at the farm level. To increase milk production, several dairy farmers are allegedly administering banned oxytocin injections and cheap steroid tablets to cows. Farmers claim that giving these tablets just before milking boosts milk output significantly, often extracting every drop from the animal. These tablets, sold at around Rs 85 for a bottle of 60, a...