Western Railway has imposed fines totalling Rs 1.14 lakh on 22 catering units at railway stations over the past four months after inspections found violations, officials said on Friday, reported PTI.
The railway zone inspected 301 food establishments at suburban stations between April and July. These included 292 railway-operated units, seven catering units run under IRCTC and two Rail Coach Restaurants.
The inspections were part of Western Railway’s ongoing efforts to monitor food quality, hygiene and cleanliness at catering and vending outlets across its stations.
WR clarifies action unrelated to Maharashtra FDA
Western Railway Chief Public Relations Officer Vineet Abhishek also clarified that recent action against some catering stalls was not linked to inspections by Maharashtra’s Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
“We regularly take action against catering units. We closed a few stalls in the last two to three weeks, but they were shut following our regular inspections and had nothing to do with the FDA,” said Abhishek, reported PTI.
His remarks came after reports suggested that catering outlets at railway stations had been shut by the Maharashtra FDA, which has recently taken action against several eateries in Mumbai and other parts of the state over hygiene and other violations.
Western Railway said similar inspections are also carried out at catering units outside Mumbai to ensure compliance with prescribed standards.
1,523 inspections conducted till July
The zone conducted 1,523 regular and surprise inspections of catering and vending units up to July, involving 351 officers and 1,172 supervisors, officials said.
As part of its food quality checks, Western Railway collected 855 food samples and 142 packaged drinking water samples for testing during the period.
The railway zone has also provided 48 Total Polar Materials (TPM) meters to monitor the quality of cooking oil used for deep frying at catering units.
A special drive focused on food hygiene and cleanliness at catering stalls is underway from August 15 to August 31. Western Railway plans to conduct 300 inspections as part of the drive.
The zone is also carrying out checks against unauthorised vending and monitoring fire safety compliance, approved food items, and the quality and quantity of food served on trains, a Western Railway spokesperson said.