Railways imposes Rs 5.13 cr fine, terminates 6 contracts and debars defaulting licensees for food quality violations in last 3 years
New Delhi, August 7
About only 0.0008% food quality related complaints are received on average. Based on complaints during the last three years, appropriate penal actions have been taken by IRCTC, such actions include imposition of fines amounting to Rs 5.13 crore, issuance of 54 show-cause notices, six termination of contracts and debarment of licensees for food quality and hygiene violations, Ministry of Railways said.
Regular and surprise inspections are conducted by Railway/IRCTC officials, including Food Safety Officers, to ensure quality, hygiene, safety and regulatory compliance. These inspections cover key aspects such as food safety, staff deployment, equipment maintenance, cleanliness and adherence to prescribed standards while promoting best practices in food handling, storage and preparation.
Railways said it has taken steps to improve quality, hygiene and food safety.
"Supply of meals from designated Base Kitchens, Commissioning of modern Base Kitchens at identified locations, installation of CCTV Cameras in Base Kitchens for real time and better monitoring of food preparation, shortlisting and use of popular and branded raw materials for food production, deployment of Food Safety Supervisors at Base Kitchens to monitor food safety and hygienic practices, deployment of on-board IRCTC supervisors on trains, introduction of QR codes on meal packets supplied in trains to enhance food safety, transparency and passenger awareness," it said.
"The QR code provides details regarding date of packing, name of the licensee and FSSAI license number, for information of passengers," they added.
This information was provided by the Union Minister for Railways, Information & Broadcasting and Electronics & Information Technology, Ashwini Vaishnaw, in a reply to a question in Rajya Sabha today.
— ANI
Reader Comments
Finally some accountability! I remember getting stale food on a Rajdhani trip last year. Terminating 6 contracts and debarring licensees sends a strong message. But 0.0008% complaints? That seems suspiciously low given how many passengers complain on social media daily. 🤔
The CCTV cameras in base kitchens is a welcome move. But let's be real - the real problem is the pantry cars on long-distance trains. They're often filthy and the food quality varies wildly. Why not have more base kitchens and fewer on-train cooking? Just saying.
As someone who travels by train frequently, I appreciate these improvements. But the inspection frequency needs to increase. Surprise checks during off-peak hours would catch more violations. Also, passengers should get a easy way to rate food quality on IRCTC app. 😊
Good initiative but 54 show-cause notices in 3 years across the entire railway network is nothing. We have over 7000 stations! The enforcement needs to be much more rigorous. Also, the fine amount seems low compared to what these vendors earn. Should be at least 10x.
Impressive transparency from Indian Railways. The QR code system is a great use of technology. I've seen similar systems in Japan and South Korea. It's good to see India adopting these practices. Hope they expand the CCTV monitoring to pantry cars as well.
We welcome thoughtful discussions from our readers. Please keep comments respectful and on-topic.