Srinagar: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Jammu and Kashmir, on Tuesday conducted a food safety enforcement drive across Srinagar city, inspecting 20 street food establishments and penalising eight vendors for hygiene-related violations.
The inspections were carried out to assess compliance with provisions of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, particularly sanitary and hygiene requirements prescribed under Schedule 4 of the regulations.
As part of the drive, the FDA conducted a special RUCO (Repurpose Used Cooking Oil) campaign in areas including Nishat, Maki Point, Nehru Park, LD Hospital and Khayam.
Officials said eight Food Business Operators (FBOs) were compounded under Section 69 of the Food Safety and Standards Act for violations of prescribed sanitary and hygienic standards and were fined a total of Rs 8,000.
During the inspections, around 45 litres of used and repeatedly reused edible cooking oil was found unsuitable for further use. The oil was collected and disposed of through an authorised RUCO aggregator.
The vendors were directed to comply with prescribed limits on the reuse of cooking oil and ensure that used oil is handed over only to authorised aggregators for disposal.
The enforcement teams also conducted awareness sessions for street food vendors and other food business operators on safe food handling practices, personal hygiene, sanitation, proper food storage and management of used cooking oil.
The FDA said similar inspection and awareness drives would continue across Srinagar and other parts of Jammu and Kashmir, with a focus on street food outlets, high-footfall areas and compliance with food safety norms.
The department has urged consumers to report suspected cases of unsafe or adulterated food through its toll-free helpline 104 or by emailing the Food Safety Department.
