Glass in mid-day meal: FDA cancels licence of Ghatkopar contractor

Mumbai: Days after small glass shards were found in the mid-day meal served to students at a municipal school in Ghatkopar, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has cancelled the licence of Shruti Mahila Industrial Producers Co-operative Society Limited, the contractor that supplied the meals

Mumbai: Days after small glass shards were found in the mid-day meal served to students at a municipal school in Ghatkopar, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has cancelled the licence of Shruti Mahila Industrial Producers Co-operative Society Limited, the contractor that supplied the meals.

Following reports of small glass pieces being found in a mid-day meal at a BMC school in Ghatkopar on July 30, a BMC food safety medical officer visited the school to inspect the meal preparation and quality of food on Tuesday. As part of the inspection, the officer, along with school teachers, tasted the food before it was served to students, while also checking hygiene and food safety measures to reassure children and parents. (Satish Bate/Hindustan Times)

According to a statement from the FDA, the decision was taken following an inspection of the contractor’s food-preparation unit. Officials allegedly found several violations of food safety rules at the unit.

Following the inspection, the food licences of Shruti Mahila Industrial Producers Co-operative Society Limited and an associated food establishment were suspended with immediate effect under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, and the Food Safety and Standards (Food Business Licensing and Registration) Rules, 2011, the statement said.

HT had reported about the incident on July 30, when a student of the Pantnagar Upper Primary Hindi School in Ghatkopar felt a piece of glass between their teeth while eating the mid-day meal.

According to the FDA, the contractor was supplying food to more than 3,000 school students every day. It added that the food safety violations found during the inspection could have posed a serious risk to students’ health, and that immediate action was necessary to protect public health.

Following the incident, a food safety medical officer from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) visited the school in Ghatkopar to inspect the quality of the mid-day meals. Along with teachers, the officer tasted the food before it was served to students. The inspection also included checks on hygiene standards and food safety measures to reassure students and parents.

Vikash Gughe, a teacher and representative of the Prahar Teachers Organisation, welcomed the action. “Students are now getting good quality food from another mid-day meal supplier associated with ISKCON. The food being served is of better quality, which has brought relief to students and parents,” he said.