File Photo: A packet of Maggi noodles.
The Maharashtra government late on Friday banned Nestle's Maggi noodles in the state.
Food and Civil Supplies Minister Girish Bapat announced the ban after reports of six Maggi samples were received from a Pune testing lab.
According to these reports, the lead content in the samples was found to be far in excess of 2.5 parts per million (ppm).
The lab report found the lead content to be 4.66 ppm, 2.59 ppm and 2.55 ppm.
The minister has directed shopkeepers to immediately return unsold stocks of Maggi noodles and barred them from sales with liability of penal action.
The order comes hours after the Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA) commissioner announced that Maggi noodles were found safe with nine samples testing negative.