Pune: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Friday issued an improvement notice to a mid-day meal supplier catering to over 100 civic schools in Pune, following the recent incident where students were allegedly served insect-infested food at a school in Kharalwadi.
The action comes days after students at a Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation-run Urdu school reported finding insects in their breakfast on April 18. The issue surfaced around 9:50 am when students alerted their teachers after spotting contamination in the meal. Photographs of the food were later circulated widely, prompting outrage and a formal complaint.
Advocate Sagar Charan, former vice-chairman of the PCMC health department grievance redressal committee, submitted a written complaint to municipal commissioner Vijay Suryawanshi, seeking immediate action. Hindustan Times reported the incident in its April 19 edition.
Acting on the report, an FDA team visited the school on Tuesday and inspected the central kitchen facility in Pimpri on Friday. During the visits, the officials collected five samples, including raw materials — chana dal, edible oil and rice — and cooked items such as khichdi and pulao. The samples were sealed and sent to a laboratory for analysis.
Assistant commissioner (Food), FDA Pune region, A R Deshmukh, said the notice was issued under the provisions of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, directing the operator to comply with norms within 15 days. “Further action will be taken based on the laboratory report,” he added.
{{/usCountry}}Assistant commissioner (Food), FDA Pune region, A R Deshmukh, said the notice was issued under the provisions of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, directing the operator to comply with norms within 15 days. “Further action will be taken based on the laboratory report,” he added.
{{/usCountry}}Food safety officer Akshay Shelke said that although overall hygiene at the facility was satisfactory because food was prepared mechanically, inspectors also identified several lapses.
The staff’s valid medical certificates were unavailable. The pest control measures in one of the godowns were inadequate, and rice sacks were not stored on pallets as mandated. Cobwebs were observed at multiple locations on the ceiling, indicating poor upkeep. The complaint redressal mechanism was also ineffective, and workers handled food without wearing head caps.
The mid-day meal centre supplies food to more than 105 schools across the city. Although the government provides most of the raw materials, authorities said they conduct third-party audits of these centres periodically.
(Photo Caption: Akshay Shelke Food Safety Officer sealing samples)