Catering unit found serving food to Railways sealed after health officials seize stale food from kitchen

Stale nutrient seized by wellness officials of the Kochi Corporation from a steadfast supplying nutrient to Railways astatine Kadavanthra successful the metropolis connected Wednesday. | Photo Credit: R.K. Nithin

The wellness helping of the Kochi Corporation raided and sealed a catering portion reportedly serving nutrient connected trains, including Vande Bharat, adjacent Kadavanthra here, aft uncovering ample quantities of stale nutrient and its room successful unhygienic information connected Wednesday (May 14, 2025).

Brindavan Food Products operating successful the Elamkulam part of the Kochi Corporation had been nether the wellness wing’s scanner for a fewer months pursuing nationalist complaints and had been served aggregate notices before. It was recovered to beryllium operating without the requisite licence issued by the Corporation.

The latest enactment followed a ailment by residents of a colony successful the vicinity of the catering portion connected Tuesday (May 13, 2025) night. They complained of unbearably atrocious odour from a godown and the workers’ quarters successful the neighbourhood of the firm.

“We recovered astir 50 kg of stale chicken, seemingly months old, successful the godown. It was astir intolerable to basal anyplace nearby. Those successful complaint of the steadfast took it distant aft spraying disinfectant. I besides asked the wellness inspector to instrumentality contiguous action, pursuing which the canteen was raided contiguous [Wednesday],” said Antony Painuthara, Elamkulam part councillor.

The wellness officials recovered printed nutrient containers suggesting that the catering portion supplied nutrient connected trains. “We person sealed the unit, and a study volition beryllium filed with the Corporation secretary. They [operators] volition person to get the licence, acceptable up facilities for treating wastewater, and past record a caller exertion with the caput to get the steadfast unfastened again,” said V.V. Suresh, elder nationalist wellness inspector of the Corporation.

Reportedly, nary authorised idiosyncratic from the catering portion was astir during the raid to person the mahazar oregon different applicable documents. The steadfast had been served with notices successful the past for operating without the requisite licence and wastewater attraction plant. Wastewater and nutrient discarded were being dumped into a adjacent canal linked to the Punchathodu canal. It was besides fined ₹10,000 for allegedly dumping discarded into the canal a period ago.

M.G. Aristotle, the United Democratic Front (UDF) parliamentary enactment secretary, accused the Corporation of being apathetic successful tackling a superior contented similar nutrient safety. A premier illustration of that cognition was a mobile nutrient prime trial laboratory received much than a twelvemonth agone nether the Corporate Social Responsibility fund, lying idle, helium said. Later successful the day, the UDF staged a protestation successful beforehand of the mobile nutrient lab.

Railways slap fine

The Southern Railway has slapped a good of ₹1 lakh connected the catering firm, Brindavan Food Products, for lapses reported successful cleanliness standards, and the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) has been advised to instrumentality stringent action.

Besides, a high-level committee of elder officers comprising Divisional Commercial Manager (Thiruvananthapuram), Health Officer (Thiruvananthapuram), and Area Manager (IRCTC) has been constituted to behaviour an inquiry, a merchandise issued present said.

This, the connection said, was pursuing media reports connected proviso of old/expired nutrient by a basal room being tally by the catering contractor of the IRCTC and the Railways adjacent the Ernakulam presumption arsenic recovered during inspection by wellness officials of the Kochi Corporation.

Though the portion was having Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) Certification licence, the Corporation authorities claimed that the Kitchen portion was operating without a commercialized licence and did not person a sewage attraction works (STP). Meanwhile, the IRCTC has said that arrangements had been made to guarantee uninterrupted and hygienic nutrient proviso to passengers of mail/express trains, and large corrective steps were besides being taken to support the standards of hygiene and nutrient quality, the connection added.

Published - May 14, 2025 07:49 p.m. IST