KUMUD JENAMANI
Jamshedpur, Jan 16: People are consuming dishes made out of perished chickens unknowingly at several eateries in the steel city thanks to laxity in the food inspection system of the administration.
Notably, dead chickens are finding their way into the eateries as it makes a huge profit margin in comparison to buying live chickens. Moreover, the administration, to be specific the food inspector is also not taking notice of the ongoing menacing business.
Those indulged in the business do sell out perished chickens to the eateries at a throwaway price like at Rs 20 per piece weighing 1.5 kgs or 2 kgs each whereas the live chickens are sold in the market at Rs 120 per kg.
Owners of several eateries, especially those doing business on the roadside at localities even like Bistupur and Sakchi tend to buy the perished chickens which die either due to overmedication or during transportation. Some restaurant owners also use to take such chickens.
ALSO READ: Champai Soren airlifted to Chennai for treatment of diabetes
One of the suppliers who indulged in the ugly practice said he sells out a considerable number of perished chickens a day.
For ensuring that eateries including hotels and restaurants are providing quality food to customers, the government has made it mandatory that each and every eatery must get registered by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI).
Whether the people are getting quality or standard foods in any hotel or restaurant is looked after food inspector who works under a sub-divisional officer to see whether the eateries are adhering to the norms set by the FSSAI.
The food inspector has to conduct random inspections of sweetmeat shops, restaurants and hotels from whey take food samples on suspicion of serving or selling sub-standard items. Here in steel city, the food inspector here takes samples of all food items except the non-veg items.
Manzar Hossain, food inspector, Jamshedpur confirmed that they can not take samples of non-veg items while carrying out an inspection at any eatery.
“For taking samples of non-veg items, we should have a system for maintaining a cold chain of such samples while carrying them from Jamshedpur to Ranchi where the food testing lab is located. But we are yet to be equipped with the facility of maintaining the cold chain of samples. Facility for maintaining the cold-chain system is not available anywhere and not even at the food testing lab at Namkum, Ranchi, ” said Hossain while talking to lagatar24.com.
He said he joined as a food inspector in Jamshedpur in August 2022 after which he collected 22 samples from different eateries and sent them to the Namkum-based lab for testing.
“Of the 22 samples, reports of 10 samples have come. Of the 10, adulteration has been found in five samples tested. The shop and eatery owners from where the adulterated samples had been collected will be prosecuted soon,” Hossain informed.
The Namkum-based government lab is registered under National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories (NABL) and the lab has to carry out the test as per the norms of the NABL.
The food inspector said the NABL has issued the certificate to the Namkum-based lab for carrying out the bacterial test in non-veg food only if there is a cold-chain system available in the sample collection and testing.
“As we have no facility for maintaining the cold chain, we do not collect some of the non-veg items keeping the NABL’s directives in mind, ” Hossain said.
Significantly, a Bistupur-based eatery owner who is known for fair business while talking to this correspondent observed “the act of food inspection comes under health department which should incorporate officials of drug control department in the job as a loan food inspector can not handle the affair of ensuring quality foods in the eateries.”
