Host of delicacies served to dignitaries

Ludhiana, December 14

A host of delicacies were served today to the Pakistan delegates visiting Punjab to be a part of the Kabaddi World Cup closing ceremony. Lunch was served to them at a five star hotel after an interactive session with the industry. 

Non-vegetarian dishes in the main course were murg lababdaar, Kashmiri ghosht, rogan josh, Amritsari fried fish while the vegetarian dishes included paneer ka pasanda and khumb matar masala.

“Murg ghosht and rogan josh are among the favourite dishes of people living in Pakistan Punjab,” said a source from the hotel.

Choco-walnut pudding, gajrela and kesari rasmalai were also enjoyed by the delegation. Both non-vegetarian and vegetarian food was appreciated by the dignitaries.

Samples collected 

Food safety officers of the Health Department remained on their toes for collection of samples of eatables from the places where the Pakistan delegates along with Pakistan Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif visited today in the city.

The delegates reached the PAU campus around 10.15am where they were served breakfast at the Thapar Hall.

Mukul Gill, Food Safety Officer, Moga, said: “We collected samples of snacks and beverages that were served to them in breakfast.”

Later, they visited the Sub-Registrar Office (West) at Hambran Road from where samples of some eatables were collected.”

Food Safety Officer, Jalandhar, Sukhran Singh Minhas said: “We collected samples of as many as 19 eatables served during lunch at Raddison Blue hotel.”

Samples of foods items served during dinner were collected by Food Safety Officer, Ludhiana, Ravinder Garg, at Sterlin Manner hotel, Pakhowal Road.

Samples of various food items were also collected by Food Safety Officer Manoj Khosla at Guru Nanak Stadium.

Mid-day Meal: Authorities Insensitive to DPI Circular

To prevent another mid-day meal tragedy on the lines of the one in Bihar which claimed the lives of 23 schoolchildren in July, Director of Public Instruction (DPI) Biju Prabhakar, who is also in-charge of the Food Safety Department, issued a circular, with 21 crucial directives, on October 30 to all schools in the state to ensure safety in mid-day meal supply. However, the school authorities are turning a blind eye to the directives.

The circular, issued two months ago, had no impact on the schools so far. The circular instructs each school to register their kitchen under the Food Safety Department (FSD) with proper details of the storage facility, kitchen facility, health of kitchen employees, hygienic measures taken etc. But so far, the FSD has not received even a single application from any school for registration. February 4, 2014 is the last date for submitting applications. The circular also instructs the authorities of schools to ensure the fitness of kitchen employees by conducting periodical medical checkups. This directive was also not taken into serious consideration by schools. “There are high chances for diseases to spread from cooks to kids through food. So the health of cooks must be ensured. Diseases such as typhoid can be transmitted through unclean food habits,” M K Appunni, retired DMO, said.

The Food Safety Department conducted inspections in the schools across the state a few months ago and it revealed that kitchens in most of the schools were functioning under unhygienic conditions. “None of the schools have proper storage facilities and due to this the grains are getting spoiled. Kitchens in all the schools are functioning under unhygienic conditions. It is the key reason why the directives were issued,” Food Safety Officer Mini A K said.

School headmasters complain that they have not received any proper directives in this regard. “I saw the circular on the Education Department’s website but I did not get any directive from the Deputy Director of Education yet. Anyway let me look into it,” Head Master of Kalanjoor LP School, Konni, Sree Kumar K said.

“We issued such a circular to create awareness among the school authorities. We will assist them in implementing the directives. We sought Central Government fund for its implementation,” Biju Prabhakar said. He also said this was not the phase for taking action against anyone. “Our sole intention is to make the school authorities aware of healthy ways to prevent diseases. Once this phase gets over, we won’t compromise and strict action will be taken against all those who violate the norms in the circular,” Biju Prabhakar said.

Some of the Major Directives

■ A senior teacher will ensure whether food is supplied strictly under the Food Safety Regulations Act or not. The teacher must also be a member of the Food committee. In addition to the senior teacher, a doctor from the Primary Health Centre and a representative of students must also be there in the Food committee.

■ Food materials should be bought only from a shop registered under the Food Safety Act.

■ Food materials must be stored in safe storage rooms.

■ The contact number of the Food Safety Officer should be displayed on the notice board of schools.

■ Mandatory chemical and microbiological tests must be done periodically to ensure the quality of drinking and cooking water.

■ Kitchen staff must be free of diseases and periodical health checkups must be done.

■ Cooking should not be done in open air.

■ Keep urinal, latrines etc away from the kitchen and must be cleaned.

■ Drainage must be covered.

■ Kitchen workers should have separate living rooms.

NASVI providing a springboard for Street Food Entrepreneurs

CULINARY ENTREPRENUERS ON STREETS IN INDIA 

The Street Food Festival of 2013 is the third edition of Street Food Festival organized by the National Association of Street Vendors of India(NASVI).What began as an internal event of NASVI where street food vendors served different recipes to delegates in the Annual General Meetings has metamorphosed into a mega event where hundreds of street food vendors put stalls serving delicacies from all over the country attracting thousands of customers including customers who have hitherto been skeptical of the street food. The whole event gives unprecedented publicity to the issues of harassment and security of livelihood of street vendors making Policy Makers and administrators think of urgent interventions. 

More people depend on street food than on restaurants and hotels in Indian cities. Street Food Vendors not only provide fresh and tasty food but they are also available at convenient location and have good bonding with the customers. And most importantly the whole world of recipe is there – from snacks to beverages to lunch and dinner .Name the dish and you have on the street –also the dishes one has never heard off, dishes which has passed over generations and dishes which vendors have brought from their family kitchen to the streets. Vendors also give a personal touch to the dishes with either a particular spice or method of cooking which makes customers visit only that particular vendor. 

As Cities in India are growing bigger the opportunities too are increasing. The opportunities obviously are being used by people with capital. Food Chains are becoming order of the day. Companies claiming to sell Street Food and Food Courts in Mall flaunting street food is a common sight though the taste and the flavor are far removed from what the lakhs of ‘CULINARY ENTREPRENUERS ON STREETS ‘roll out . And as the food at Malls and Restaurants get costlier ,there is a huge potential in the food at the street as more and more urban Indians want to go out for the meals ,a phenomenon not so common in the past but is picking up fast .However Street Food Vendors are more important than the street food per say . Many players are entering into the street food sector displacing the livelihood of lakhs of street food vendors. In all these contexts mentioned above Street Food Festival becomes significant 

The National Street Food Festival being organized on 20th ,21st and 22nd December at the JLN complex is a major advocacy event. The event will be inaugurated by the Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation Minister of Govt of India along with the Minister for Food Processing Industry. The inaugural event will also have luminaries like the Chairperson of the Food Safety and Standard Authority of India (FSSAI) and people from the Private Sector. On the third day of the event will be Award Function .The customers will vote for the Most Popular Vendor and there will also be an award for the Most Popular Woman Vendor. There are also awards on the basis of Hygiene, Cleanliness and Presentation by the Vendors. These awards besides providing them cash also are a recognition of doing best despite the odds and constraints. To give the event a festival cover, cultural performances have been organised by various bands so that the crowd remains engaged as they keep enjoying the delicacies. 

The range of the recipes is also enthralling .Litti Murga,Tash Kabab ,Makhana ka Khir ,Mawa Kachauri ,Pyaz Kachauri ,Khasta Kachauri,Dal Bati Churma,Chicken 65, Paddu,Tamrind rice, Mysore Dosa ,Kandah Bajji,Fish Stew,Chciken Achar ,Pani Patasha ,Rab,Hyderabad Biryani,Halim, Double ka Meetha,Crab and Lobster dishes, Sandesh,Rosogulla,Jhing Mach Pakora, Rohu Mach bhat, Odisha Pitha, Thukpa and Momo , Assam tea, Gathiya, Khakhara,Dhokla ,Sabudana Khicdi and Bara, Chole Kulcha and Bahture, Tikki Chaat,Dahi Bara, Mutton and Chicken Korma, Seek Kabab, Variety of Parathas , Kacauri Chaat with banana topping ,Kebabs from Lucknow,Makke ki roti and sarson ki saag and so on and on and on . 

The Street Food Festival has unleashed the potential of the Street Food Vendors .NASVI has helped them to galvanize into a company called the NASVI Street Foods Pvt Ltd . Street Food Vendors are buying shares of the Company. Like in NASVI, the street vendors will be on board of the company. The Company will intervene in 

a) Setting up Food Streets and Food Courts 

b) Catering Service 

c) Modern Food Carts 

d) Supply of ingradients to food vendors 

e) Organise Food Festivals across country 

f) Provide training to food vendors 

Besides mopping up capital from Street Food Vendors, the Company has also started attracting like minded investors for funds for the company. Some like GBM Foods has come forward and a tie up looks imminent. 

As we enter the last leg of preparation for the event, we are also concerned about the proposed law for Street Vendors which was passed by the Lower House of Indian Parliament but has to be passed by the Upper House for it to become law. Since the beginning of the winter session, the Indian Parliament is witnessing daily adjournment. Lot of effort has gone into the Bill and more importantly the Law not only has the potential to change the face of Indian cities and quality of life of Street vendors in India but also show to the World the method of regulating street vending so as to create a win win situation in cities, making cities more orderly along with making lives of street vendors better b securing their livelihood. 

Come Join Us, Support The Cause……

Two food safety officers suspended

Commissioner of Food Safety Biju Prabhakar has issued orders placing food safety officers V.K. Pradeepkumar and Biby Mathew, attached to the Pattambi circle and the Shoranur municipality respectively, under suspension for letting off a food business operator (FBO) after allegedly accepting a bribe.

The orders were issued following preliminary evidence that they had deliberately violated procedural requirements for seizing an article of food under the Food Safety and Standards Act (FSSA), in connivance with an FBO so that no action could be initiated against the latter.

The FBO had been detained for bringing in palm kernel oil from across the border, suspected to be an adulterant for coconut oil, a press note issued by the office of the Commissioner said.

The officials had detained a tanker lorry transporting palm kernel oil at the Walayar check-post on December 5. It was an inter-State stock transfer from Kaleeswary Refinery Pvt. Ltd., Chennai to their depot in Palakkad.

The safety officials allegedly did not take the surveillance samples from the detained lorry as per the relevant provisions of the FSSA.

Also, the mahassar was prepared without any independent witnesses signing the document.

Procedural requirements under the Act such as issuing a seizure memo and getting the FBO to execute a bond had been violated, the press note said.

To hide all procedural irregularities, an affidavit was made in connivance with the FBO by purchasing a stamp paper on December 6. The affidavit was but executed with the date as December 5. Unlike in previous occasions, the detained vehicle was released without consulting higher authorities, the Commissioner’s press note added.

Action on charge of taking bribe

Violation of procedural requirements alleged

Private milk society raided

The premises of a private milk society in Gudalur was raided on Saturday. Food Safety Officer R.V.Ravi said that there had been an allegation that the society was purchasing a large quantity of milk manufactured by a Coimbatore-based company and selling it after diluting it with water. A sample had been taken from the society and sent for analysis.