FSDA crackdown: Two hookah bars raided in Lucknow, fined

Restaurants and lounge bars in Lucknow have been serving hookah to minors and in some cases without pictorial warning – that ‘hookah is injurious to health’.

On the third day of ‘Operation Hookah Bar’, the Food Safety and Drug Administration (FSDA) on Wednesday raided Smokedine Lounge in Aliganj and ‘Dark Moon Lounge’ at Purania crossing. These bars were let off after paying a fine of Rs 5,800 under the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA).

The FSDA has made it clear that it will target lounges for violation of COTPA.(HT File Photo)

Boys and girls below 18 were found smoking hookah in these bars.

“Hookahs should be served exclusively in designated smoking rooms – only to adults who know about the side-effects and hazards of tobacco consumption. Hookahs should not be served in dining areas. We have fined the violators according to the law,” said Shashi Pandey, designated officer, FSDA.

Restaurants and lounge bars in Lucknow have been serving hookah to minors and in some cases without pictorial warning – that ‘hookah is injurious to health’.

The FSDA has made it clear that it will target such lounges for violation of COTPA.

Besides, hotels/lounges advertising such things would also be fined.

The FSDA also destroyed the fungus-infected chicken stored in the kitchen of one lounge. The kitchens of both the lounges were dirty and insects were found in food items while the sauces and chutneys used were rotten.