Alwar Medical College Mess Found With 70kg Insect-Infested Flour and Dal; Fungus-Laden Bread Also Discovered, Notice Issued

Alwar: The Health Department has been carrying out continuous inspections of restaurants and other food establishments in and around government and private hospitals. As part of this drive, a team from the Food Safety Department inspected the mess at the Government Medical College near Jail Circle in Alwar on Friday. During the inspection, the team was left stunned by the condition of the food items stored in the mess.

CMHO Dr Yogendra Sharma said the food safety officers' team examined the food and provisions kept in the mess. During the check, around 70 kg of flour, maida, besan, arhar dal and moong dal were found infested with insects. Once the infestation was discovered, the team had all the affected stock destroyed on the spot to ensure it could not be used for cooking.

Fungus-laden bread also found

The inspection also turned up old bread and pav laden with fungus in the mess. These too were removed and destroyed on the spot. In addition, food safety officers collected one sample each of the soybean oil and spices being used in the mess. Both samples have been sent to a laboratory for testing, and the position on the quality of the food items will become clearer once the reports are received.

The inspection also found that cleanliness arrangements in the mess were not satisfactory. The food safety team has issued a notice to the mess operator over this. The Health Department has said such inspections of food quality and hygiene in and around hospitals will continue going forward.

Samples also taken from restaurants and dhabas

Cleanliness was also found lacking in the kitchen of a restaurant near Telco Circle. Along with issuing a notice to the operator, two samples were taken from the restaurant under surveillance. From a kitchen near Bhagat Singh Circle, a sample of soybean oil was taken, while samples of red chilli powder and curd were collected from nearby dhabas for testing. Improvement notices were issued to the establishments concerned, directing them to improve their cleanliness standards. Keshav Goyal, Vishwa Bandhu Gupta, Jai Singh Yadav, Ashok Lakhera, Neeraj Rawat, Anjali Meena, Alka, Nitesh and Rajesh Poonia were present during the drive.