Hotel ‘hygiene’ in Hyderabad is food for thought
Barely a month after it was formed, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) task force set up by the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) has found alarming hygiene issues in restaurants and hotels across the city, so much so that questions about consumer health are being raised.
The task force found widespread food adulteration and substandard conditions in hotels and restaurants during its inspection of 75 to 80 establishments during the course of one month. These establishments include bakeries, supermarkets and restaurants. The task force found that 90% of these were operating under unhygienic conditions.
The inspections found kitchens and storerooms infested with cockroaches and other insects. Many establishments were found selling expired food items. While 24 cases have been filed under various Acts, criminal cases are expected to follow after laboratory reports are received, in about a fortnight.
Meanwhile, the GHMC has issued a public warning against consuming brightly coloured food items like Chicken-65, tandoori chicken, coloured biryani and gobi, as these often contain dangerous levels of additives. It said that in many cases, the levels of additives were found to be 5-10 times higher than the permissible limit of 100 parts per million (ppm), posing significant health risks.