Jan 17, 2016

Safe Kerala campaign brings steady change among those engaged in food business

KOZHIKODE: What the numerous awareness drives by health officials couldn't deliver through the campaign held over last year was achieved successfully by the intensive inspection drive carried out by the officials in the first fortnight of the current year.
The regular inspections by the officials to check hygienic quality of food being served at food outlets under the Safe Kerala campaign of the health department have succeeded in bringing steady and positive change among people engaged in food business about the importance of maintaining cleanliness at the time of preparing and selling food items.
The data with the health department shows a decline in the number of violations detected in the shops after the launch of Safe Kerala campaign in 2015. The officials have started crackdown of eatery outlets in 2016 which are found selling unhygienic food items to curb the spreading of communicable diseases.
The officials have served notices to only 44 shops and closed down the six shops engaged in food business during the first round of raid conducted in January 2016. The number in the corresponding period in 2015 was more than 100 soon after the launch of Safe Kerala campaign.
The officials have also levied a sum of Rs 3800 under the prohibition of public smoking so far this year. The team further detected that of the 262 migrant workers employed at various eatery outlets, only 47 of them having health card. The officials have slapped notices under the Madras Public Health Act, 1939, against the shops for preparing the food in the most unhygienic condition and for non-disposal of generated waste which created a safe environment for mosquito breeding.
The health department had carried out the simultaneous inspections through 74 squads to curb the spreading of the communicable diseases. The two district level teams conducted raids in the corporation and Vadakara municipality.
According to the health department, the officials covered 877 eatery outlets which includes 347 hotels, 217 cool bars, 171 bakeries, nine catering centres, five ice factories, nine soda manufacturing units and 119 other types of stalls during the drive heled from January 1 to 15, 2016. In 2015, the health officials here had issued notices to more than three hundred shops, houses and estates for keeping the surrounding unhygienic. The 27,273 inspections held in three rounds in 2015 had covered 25,767 houses, 197 estates and 1309 institutions and shops during the three rounds of site inspections held in 2015.
Junior Health Inspector P G Arunlal who is one among the health squad conducted raids in the corporation limit said that there is a positive change among shop owners. `` We have succeeded in changing the attitude as shop owners are now well aware about the importance of maintaining cleanliness at the time of preparing and storing food,'' he said.
Meanwhile, additional district medical officer Dr Piyush Namboodiri said that the change in attitude is seen very much in the approach of shop owners. `` The number of notices which crossed more than 100 in 2015 during the first round of inspection has now reduced to below fifty which is a positive sign,'' he said adding that the department wish to achieve zero violations through the Safe Kerala campaign. ``The next phase will cover the remaining food outlets that have not been covered in the first phaseday,'' he said.

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