Now Reading: Railways fines caterers Rs 5.13 crore, cancels 6 contracts
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Railways fines caterers Rs 5.13 crore, cancels 6 contracts
Indian Railways has imposed penalties of Rs 5.13 crore on caterers and terminated six contracts in the last three years over food quality and hygiene violations, the government told Parliament on Friday.…
The Story in Brief
Indian Railways has imposed penalties of Rs 5.13 crore on caterers and terminated six contracts in the last three years over food quality and hygiene violations, the government told Parliament on Friday. Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said in Rajya Sabha that 54 show-cause notices were issued and several licensees were debarred. The railway serves about 58 crore meals annually, with complaints received for only 0.0008 per cent of them.
To strengthen food safety, Railways and IRCTC have introduced CCTV monitoring in base kitchens, surprise inspections, QR codes on meal packets with FSSAI details, and third-party audits. Debarred licensees are listed on the IRCTC website. The minister said branded raw materials, pest control, and staff training are also being enforced.
The Indian Opinion
The tiny complaint ratio, 0.0008 per cent, could feed a narrative that the crackdown is overblown. Yet even one bad meal can harm health and trust. Railways is right to penalise, but the test is whether the QR code tracking and CCTV audits actually cut complaints over the next year, or just increase paperwork. Will the number of violators rise or fall?
Source: assamtribune.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
