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Take food safety claims with a pinch of salt, say tricity readers
Food for thought: The recent incident where a customer dining at the Nexus Elante Mall discovered a lizard in Chhole Bhature has raised questions about the food safety standards in tricity’s hotels and restaurants. HT asked residents what should be done to ensure that food safety isn’t compromised? Here’s what they had to say:
Cleanliness matters
It is a matter of grave concern that neither do authorities carry out regular checks through the year nor do the consumers pay any heed to the cleanliness of the place they are dining at. They only look at how fancy the outlet looks. Unless, we as consumers demand the best, there is very little change that may take place on ground.
RS Dhillon, Chandigarh
Stringent action against violators
We have seen over the years, the amount of adulterated food items that are traced during festivals. This only shows us the extent of the problem. Worst still, violators get away by paying a small amount as fine. Till the laws are made stringent and food adulteration is made a criminal offence, food safety can never be guaranteed. In other nations, if any eatery is found serving sub-standard, or unhygienic food , heavy penalty is imposed and if need be, licence is cancelled. Tricity authorities must follow suit.
Capt Amar Jeet, Kharar
Regular inspections
Food safety department officials must carry out regular inspections at eateries. They should check for safety of the equipment used in food preparation, hygiene in cooking areas, whether the food is served in clean utensils etc. The presence of ants, cockroaches, flies, lizards must also be checked. The supervisory staff of the eateries too should ensure that the instructions and timescales on cleaning schedules are being followed by the cleaning staff. Signs of wear and tear of machinery can sometimes indicate the presence of pests, such as mice.
Vineet Gandhi, Chandigarh
Public memory short-lived
The incident wherein a customer dining at the food court in Elante found a lizard in his meal caused a flutter on the day, but it was forgotten with ease quickly. Those who have compulsive taste buds would eat out notwithstanding incidents such as these. Most people care about the spice and flavour of the food more than its safety and hygiene. Not just the public, even the authorities concerned of the food safety department do precious little to ensure safety of food served in eateries.
SC Luthra, Chandigarh
Consumers must demand highest safety standards
Food safety and nutrition are unquestionably major global issues which affect us all. Over the past 20 years, there have been significant changes in global consumption and purchasing patterns, and new methods of food production, processing, and distribution have emerged to match these changes. India’s fast food business is expanding rapidly. Policy makers and those implementing it should be comprehensive in their assessment of risks and vulnerability across all sections of the population, providing assurance that food is suitable for consumption. Food businesses should adopt hygienic practices set out by governments and use appropriate packaging and labeling to protect food from contamination and maintain confidence in internationally traded food. Consumers should also recognise their role by following relevant instructions and applying appropriate food hygiene measures. Strict action must be taken against the violators.
Saket Saurabh, via email
Authorities must carry out incognito inspections
The restaurants and other eateries generally do not follow any hygiene protocols. The recent incident of a lizard in the plate in Elante Mall eatery is not a freak incident. We come across dead cockroaches, flies, ants etc in various eateries on and off but no one is really bothered. The food safety and security authorities should carry out incognito and surprise checks of all the licensed restaurants and hotels. Any violations should lead to penalty and cancellation of licence. After all, it is a question of health and life.
Anil Kumar Yadav, Chandigarh
Quality control at all levels
The recent incident of a lizard found in the meal at an Elante mall eatery has triggered debates on food safety measures. With the increase in demand for home deliveries, packaging also needs to be upgraded so that no foreign material goes enters the food. The need of the hour is to have strict quality control right from the level of meal preparation to delivery. Food supply authorities should carry out surprise checks at eating joints for strict food safety measures from time to time and defaulters must be punished heavily to set an example for others.
Col.TBS Bedi.(Retd), Mohali
Cancel violators’ licence
The lack of a sense of responsibility among food joint owners and laxity at the end of authorities concerned leads to incidents such as the one witnessed at the food court in Elante Mall. A committee should be set up to check and keep a vigil on the quality of food served to customers. Any discrepancy in terms of food quality should lead to cancellation of license for a good period. A helpline, website or online portal should be set up to upload the pictures/complaints from customers. There should be no compromise with the lives of the customers.
Abhilasha Gupta, Mohali
No room for negligence
Ensuring food safety is paramount for eateries to earn their customer’s trust and eventually success in the business. After all, people visit hotels and restaurants to have a fine dining experience. But unfortunately, due to negligence, incidents such as the one at Elante Mall come to fore. Though establishments claim to maintain the highest standards, incidents such as these, debunk it. Despite the presence of experienced staff, slip-ups are common. Thus, a food safety supervisor must be deployed at each restaurant to ensure no negligence takes place. Right from food purchase to preparation to serving, the supervisor must keep a hawk’s eye.
Komal Sharma, Chandigarh
Let customers inspect the kitchen
It has often come to fore that customers discover insects, flies etc at the food served to them even in famous sweet shops in Chandigarh. Most of these eateries display a sign of ‘no admission’ outside their kitchens, which is against the rights of the customers. The least they can do is make the kitchen walls transparent so that customers can gauge the working procedures from the tables itself. Besides, those working in the kitchen should wear proper headgear, gloves etc while handling food and clean the utensils regularly. The food safety department should have a dedicated window to deal with complaints from consumers.
Kidar Nath Sharma, Chandigarh
Rate eateries on hygiene
The food and safety department must carry out regular kitchen inspections for food quality and hygiene. Restaurants must be rated not just on the variety and taste of delicacies they serve but also on food and hygiene standards. Violators must be heavily fined and the licence of repeated offenders must be cancelled. There should be a helpline for the public to register complaint. The food safety officials need to be more active so that hotels and restaurants don’t give safety standards the go-by
Prabhjot Nagpal, Zirakpur
Corrupt officials to be blamed
Corruption is the main reason why incidents such as these take place. It is a widely known fact that government officials are more than willing to let off violators once they get their cut. The other reason is that the authorities wake up only during the festive season and remain in hibernation at other times of the year. Authorities must make it a point to carry out regular kitchen and give suggestions for improvement. The onus also lies with the staff of the outlets to maintain the highest hygiene and food safety standards.
Sumesh Kumar Badhwar, Mohali
Risk to customers’ health
Dining out is supposed to be a fun experience with friends and family. But when incidents such as the one at Sagar Ratna take place, it leaves a bitter aftertaste. More importantly, these pose a risk to the health of the customers. These incidents, however, are no surprise, given the lax attitude of the authorities. No relaxation must be given to violators.
Anju Mohan, Panchkula
Stop passing the buck
It’s shocking that a lizard was found in a plate of Chole-Bhature purchased by a customer from Sagar Ratna in Elante mall last week. The restaurant management is passing the buck on to the food court management whereas food court management is denying that the lizard fell from the ceiling. But fact remains that the customer was at a high risk of getting severely infected given that he had already consumed half the bhatura before he sighted the lizard. The UT authorities are equally to be blamed as their lax attitude gives out a message to the outlets that they can give a go-by to safety precautions. On our part, we must shun eateries that are known to skip the proper procedures.
Sanjay Chopra, Mohali
Regular audits must to reassure public
The recent incident wherein a lizard was discovered in the food served by a well-known restaurant at Nexus Elante Mall has left many people concerned about the safety and hygiene levels maintained while serving food even at well-known restaurants. The authorities must conduct regular audits to check the food safety levels and any restaurant where such an incident happens should be sealed and checked properly.
Saikrit Gulati, Chandigarh
Crack the whip on owners
This is not the first time such an incident has come to light. There have been several incidents in the past, where the food safety standards were found to have been compromised by hoteliers and food court owners, but to no avail. The dispensation needs to go the hard way to crack a whip on the owners to ensure that such incidents don’t become a norm. Severe punishment and hefty fines to the errant food chain owners, including jail terms, closure of eateries and confiscation of their licences would go a long way to check the menace.
Ramesh K Dhiman, Chandigarh
Need for more awareness on food safety norms
Worldwide, food-borne diseases are a major health concern. There is a definite need for training of vendors on the basic principles of sanitation, manufacturing quality and safety, besides consumer rights and education. In this context, there are many points of intervention, viz., ensuring quality of ingredients, storage of material, basic infrastructure and services, such as space for street vendors, potable water supplies, shelter, street drainage and toilets, waste management, food inspection and laboratory analysis etc. Chandigarh, as a modern planned city, can certainly take a lead and introduce the concept of ‘Safe food town’, involving street food vendors. This will be in tandem with declaration of Chandigarh as a smart city.
Manjinder Kaur, Chandigarh
Outlet in question cannot escape accountability
Even though, there is a possibility that the recent incident may have been an attempt of mischievous elements to tarnish the image of the eatery in question, the restaurant owner cannot escape accountability. Daily sampling of food & beverages prepared in all hotels/ restaurants must be done & reports in writing be prepared. The authorities should also randomnly check and take samples of all food courts and punish those found erring. Subhash Chugh, via email.
Transparency the key
The best way to solve the problem is that all ingredients should be washed and cut in front of customer and cooking process should be shown to customer through a video or glass wall.
Nishant Mehta, via email
Safeguard consumers’ interests
It is very unfortunate that we are living in a country where there is no respect for laws. People commit a mistake, or crime, and get away after paying bribe. From small eateries to five-star hotels, food contamination takes place everywhere. To safeguard the consumers’ interests, authorities must make sure to cancel the licence of violators and send out a strong message.
Rajeev Sharma, via email
Clean cooking, serving space
The licensing authority, while issuing a certificate to any restaurant/ hotel, checks the kitchen/ food processing and storage areas. In the case where a lizard was found in the bhatoora plate, one can never be sure where the fault lies. It may have been from the kitchen or from the ceiling or table of the food court. The food authorities should be more vigilant to ensure that the complete area, including cooking, serving and eating space, is safe.
Sqn Ldr Manjit Singh Johar (retd), Chandigarh
Timely action required
Food safety has to be ensured at multiple levels, including cooking, storing and serving. Deterrence is the best way to make defaulters understand the consequences of negligence. If they fail to mend their ways, then harsh punishment should be meted out. Speedy trials are need of time.
Raghunath Chhabra, Chandigarh
READER OF THE WEEK
Quality & hygiene paramount
Quality and hygiene are the main parameters on which customers judge an eatery. Any compromise on this end will prove devastating for the eatery’s reputation and future business. All eateries must adhere to the guidelines of the Food Safety and Standards Authorities of India, implement good housekeeping procedures, monitor and train employees to maintain the highest standards when it comes to safety. They should also keep tabs on the quality of food shipments. Regular inspections by government authorities will also go a long way.
Partha Banerjee, Panchkula
EXPERT TAKE
Checks & inspections
Health dept checks seasonal food items regularly and also carries out inspections at unhygienic spots and areas from where we get complaints. People must also inform us in case they find any discrepancies.
Dr Suman Singh, director, health services, Chandigarh
Quality assurance
Quality assurance and checks is a must -- at the end of eateries and at food courts. Those failing to do so must be severely punished. Besides, they should also ensure safe and nutritious food is served.
Dr Poonam Khanna, dept of community medicine & school of public health, PGIMER
FSSAI training
Every food handler must attend food safety training and certification (FoSTaC) by FSSAI. This is a training imparted to those in the business of food, about hygiene, handling and other aspects.
Dr Gaurav Sharma, food safety officer, Panchkula
Awareness camps
Regular awareness camps must be held – for business operators as well as the public. All outlets must maintain FSSAI protocols, including anti-pest treatment and hygiene in food preparation and distribution.
Subhash Kumar, district health officer, Mohali
Human error
Most eateries take a lot of precautions and spend a major amount on pest control. But human error is always a factor. In case of a minor slip-up, customers must be patient with us so that we can make it up to them.
Arvinder Pal Singh, president, hotel and restaurant association, Chandigarh
