The Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has ordered the closure of a dark store of quick commerce platform Blinkit in Pune’s Balewadi for operating without a mandatory food safety license, people familiar with the matter said.
This comes as the food authorities have stepped up the surveillance of dark stores for safety standards among quick commerce firms.
According to the order, the facility, located near Mitcon College in Balewadi and operated by Energy Darkstore Services, was inspected on June 5 following a consumer food safety complaint.
During the inspection, FDA officials found that the store was actively storing and distributing food items without the license required under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006.
The authorities noted that the facility has also violated food safety measures.
They found food items on the floor, the pest-control audit certificate missing, workers in the food area not wearing protective caps, food items stored on dusty racks, and a cold storage unit without a calibration certificate.
According to people aware of the development, the owner of the darkstore, Omprakash Mantri, and the store manager, Jai Arvind Bhaskar, have been warned of legal action.
Notably, Energy Darkstore Services had applied for a food license in June 2024, but the required documents were not submitted properly, due to which the license was not granted.
Despite this, the company continued the food distribution operations.
The FDA said that all dark stores in Pune city are now under its surveillance.
Last week, a similar probe was conducted at Zepto’s Dharavi facility, and its food business license was suspended after it was found that the facility violated food safety guidelines.
The violations included fungal growth on food products, food storage near stagnant water, cold storage temperature not being maintained, and expired food items unsegregated from the main stock, according to a press note by the FDA.