Karnataka food safety teams inspect railway stations, Vande Bharat caterers
The Food Safety Division of the Food Safety and Drug Administration Department conducted a special inspection of several railway stations in Karnataka, including Mangaluru, on Wednesday and Thursday. The drive was aimed at checking the quality, safety, storage, labelling and food-handling practices at eateries, pantry cars, food stalls and manufacturing units located within railway premises.
On Thursday, a team led by district designated officer C.H. Praveen Kumar and another official, Girish, inspected Casino Air Caterers and Flight Services on Airport Road. This unit supplies food to Vande Bharat Express trains operating from Mangaluru Central. The caterer was directed not to keep vegetarian and non-vegetarian food items in the same freezer. The team found the master kitchen unhygienic and instructed the operators to strictly maintain cleanliness.
On Wednesday, the team had inspected the vehicle used for transporting food items from the master kitchen to the railway station. Thursday's inspection focused specifically on food suppliers to the Vande Bharat Express services.
Simultaneously, on Wednesday, food safety officials carried out inspections at 36 railway stations across the state. These were conducted under the guidance of Minister for Health and Family Welfare U.T. Khader, according to an official release.
The inspections were carried out in accordance with the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 and the Rules, 2011. The teams examined the quality, safety, storage, labelling and food-handling measures of food in hotels, eateries, pantry cars, food stalls and food manufacturing units located on railway station premises.
During the inspections, several shortcomings related to food safety and quality were observed. These included storage of samosas in cardboard boxes, vadas placed on newspapers, chutney kept in plastic buckets and other food items packed in newspapers. In addition, registration certificates of businesses were not displayed prominently at some outlets.
The department has stated that it will notify the Railways about the violations and recommend appropriate action against those concerned. The exercise is part of broader efforts to ensure that food served to passengers, particularly on premium trains like Vande Bharat Express, meets prescribed safety standards.
