DINAMANI NEWS

Unclean toilets attached to kitchens:SCB hotels jeopardising health

 

HYDERABAD: The next time you step into your favourite restaurant make sure it meets basic hygiene standards. In the last 20 days, the Secunderabad Cantonment Board sealed several eateries in the area for not following food safety norms, with unclean kitchens seriously jeopardising customers' health.

In an example of how serious the situation is, one of the most famous restaurants in Tadbund was sealed by authorities because an unclean toilet was found adjacent to kitchen. What was more shocking was that there wasn't even a partition separating the two areas. With no exhaust, the kitchen was stinking. On raiding the unit, authorities found waste material strewn all around and walls covered with oily soot. Although the eatery has been serving food for long, officials cracked the whip only last week.

In fact, over a dozen eateries in the Secunderabad Cantonment have been going about their business without bothering to obtain trade licences leave alone food safety certificates.

The owner of a hotel in New Bowenpally allowed 23 workers to live out of a small room attached to the kitchen-cum-storeroom. Neither the kitchen nor the staff room had any ventilation. Most of the workers were migrants. The hotel's trade licence lapsed last year and the owner did not renew it.

According to food safety norms, food joints should have a separate dining hall, kitchen, storeroom, washing place for utensils and parking facility. They must also have good ventilation, clean shelves, well maintained drainage systems. The staff should also follow basic hygiene measures such as wearing aprons and head caps.

"During the initial inspections we warn managements to improve conditions. If they do not fall in line, we seal them after a fortnight. We will renew licences only if the managements take remedial measures. The fine ranges from Rs 5,000 to Rs 1 lakh," SCB sanitation superintendent M Devender told TOI.

According to SCB records, there are 500 food establishments in the area. "We found, during our recent inspections, that none of the hotels followed rules and regulations stipulated in the Cantonment Act. Over 90 per cent of the owners did not follow food safety norms," an official said.
Admitting that they were not conducting periodic checks, a sanitary official, meanwhile, said, "Earlier we used to do surprise checks once in a month. This time we are conducting the raids after a gap of five years."

Speaking about the matter, S Janakirama Rao, a resident of Bowenpally, said, "Officials should conduct surprise checks regularly. Hotel managements are more concerned about their profits. They do not care for the health of the customers."

Customers' at risk

With food being prepared in unclean environments, people are susceptible to contracting diseases. Some of the major diseases they are at risk at:

Gastroenteritis (E. coli)

Cholera (V. cholerae)

Food poisoning (Shigella and Salmonella)

Typhoid (Salmonella typhi)

Hepatitis A (HAV)

Sample reports of sweets not disclosed by Health Department

Ludhiana: Before festive season, health department has taken many samples from different sweets shops but so far no reports have been out by the department. The festive season had gone but still no reports have been revealed by the department.

Many checking drive were organized in which samples from many sweetmeat shops were collected and were sent for testing. Surprisingly even after so many weeks the health department officials have failed to announce the report of these samples.

Irregularity in their working of health department has exposed them properly as no reports have been released the officials which shows the officials are hand in gloves of sweet shops.

From adulterated ‘Khoya’ to the silver layer used on sweets by the sweetmeat shop owners, every kind of irregularities are going on openly in the city while the health department was sitting on its hands.

Residents now say that health department was not ready to hold raids at major sweetmeat shops due to their personal interest.

According to the sources in health department, they have taken more than 60 samples from different sweets shops in past 30 days but reports are not being revealed.

Methods to check purity

Put a drop of iodine liquid on khoya. If a blue layer is formed, it indicates the presence of starch in khoya.

Rub the silver leaf layer on sweets with two fingers if it becomes powder then it is original. If after rubbing it forms a wick then it could be aluminum foil which is dangerous for health.

Food Safety and Standard Act

According to food safety and standard act, cases of less adulteration and labelling matters come in the categories of “substandard” and “misbranded”.

While the use of synthetic and major adulterated products, including harmful chemicals, insects in food, come under “unsafe” category.

Curry leaf found laced with deadly pesticides: PJTSAU

The researchers took 120 samples for tests and found that 71 samples had more than one pesticide.

22 commonly used pesticides found in the curry leaf samples apart from residues of some rarely used pesticides as well.

Hyderabad: Researchers from the All India Network Project on Pesticide Residues, at Prof. Jayashankar Telangana State Agricultural University (PJTSAU), have found residues of a wide range of pesticides on curry leaf, commonly known as karepak, in samples of the vegetables brought from various markets in Hyderabad.

The researchers took 120 samples for tests and found that 71 samples had more than one pesticide. They found residues of 22 commonly used pesticides in the curry leaf samples apart from residues of some rarely used pesticides as well.

However, they could not comment if the pesticide residues were at dangerous levels or tolerable as the maximum residue Limit for pesticides in curry leaf has not been prescribed by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India.

Curry leaf is a common ingredient in kitchens, especially in South Indian homes.

Dr Shashi Bhushan Vemuri, former head of the AINP on Pesticide Residues said, “While prescribing pesticide residue standards will not help common folk directly, it will at least help in making people aware if the curry leaf they are consuming is safe or not whenever a study is done. We have done research on curry leaf and found pesticide residues, but we cannot say if it is safe or unsafe.”

He added, “Curry leaf is exported to various countries and many consignments were rejected by some countries as they found large quantities of pesticides in them. An MRL for curry leaf will also ensure that the standard for exports is maintained and is not affected due to indiscriminate usage of pesticides.”

MRLs have been set by FSSAI for only a handful of vegetables which are exported by India to other countries which include soybean, onion, okra, green chilly and ginger.

The pesticide Profenophos and Triazophos were found in many samples of curry leaf but there is no maximum residue limit set by FSSAI for either pesticide for any vegetable.

Flavor of certification on choris pav and street food

It is going to be the winning combination of great taste and hygiene in street food soon, if the ambitious Serve Safe Food @ Street Food initiative takes-off, 

Food vendors in Goa are at the receiving end of a makeover. An ambitious food safety and hygiene training-cum-certification programme is underway to ensure clean food to customers. It is a pilot project under the Serve Safe Food @ Street Food initiative of the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). 

Under the initiative street food vendors are due for a transformation. They will be trained to maintain sanitation in cooking and serving. Proof of training (as per norms) will be a certificate issued by the Food and Drug Administration department. Vendors will also present themselves to customers sleekly. Clad in clean tees, cap and apron they will be matching restaurants in smartness.

All in it is going to be the perfect fusion for street food lovers. Residents get to tuck into their favorite choris pav and ras omlete without worrying over the aftermaths. The certificate displayed on the food cart will be the evidence of quality for the customer. It is an ambitious programme with the purpose of raising the level of street food vendors. The taste of street food is unquestionable yummy but efforts now are in improving quality so that the food can be had by all and business increases.

Over the years, street food in Goa is got amazing in range. From juices to milkshakes and shawarmas to cutlet bread there is wide variety to suit all taste. The food street at Miramar-Dona Paula road where there are about 25-30 vendors is an example of the diversity in choice. Vendor Ram Gopal Singh, ragda- patties cart owner, says that most of the cart owners on the road are following rules of hygiene. Singh is wearing an apron and gloves.

The gloves are disposable and the water served to customers is branded, he says. But a query on the cleanliness of the water used for washing brings an unsatisfactory reply. Singh says that the water is fresh and got from home. The area has no running water source from the municipality and so Singh like other cart owners has to depend on stored water.

Check around Panjim city reveals that several of the popular street food vendors follow basic rules of hygiene. The Ravi Ras Omelet, at the end of 18th June Road is highly popular in clientele. Proprietor Ravi is in apron, cap and gloves. His three helpers are similarly attired. Chat with several food vendors reveals that most are willing to follow hygiene rules.

The problem is in the unsanitary road conditions. “Garbage in this area has not been lifted since days,” says Sushil Naik, vendor of cutlet pav near National Theatre. Naik claims that vendors who do brisk business maintain a certain level of cleanliness because they want to satisfy customers but the problem is in small cart owners who flout all rules.

According to Salim Veljee, director, FDA, there are 500 registered street food vendors in Goa who are FDA licensed, while 150 vendors are unlicensed. “Food vendors who have not got clearance from the panchayat or the municipality are not registered by us,” he says. The problem of unlicensed operators is not because of the inclination of the vendor to flout rules but because of the delay in getting permits from the local body, he says. “The Serve Safe Food @ Street Food initiative is open for all food vendors,” clarifies Veljee.

The programme was launched on November 2 2016 with support of the National Association of Street Vendors of India (NASVI) and Nestle- Goa. At the first instance around 35 vendors arrived for training. The target is training in batches of all vendors with 100 per cent coverage by December end. If the programme is implemented successfully then Goa will be the first state in India to have trained and certified food vendors.

Arbind Singh, national convenor, NASVI, said that street food vendors are businessmen in their own way. There are examples of food vendors who have become big industrialists, he said. He said that Gulshan Kumar, T-Series founder, was a juice vendor once. The latest initiative is an opportunity to change for all food vendors in the state.

Timely collection of garbage, availability of water and absence of harassment from police and municipal workers is the main problem faced by all street food vendors in Goa. These issues need to be addressed along with training and certification to improve the quality of street food in the state.