Mumbai, Serving expired food and drink is not merely a deficiency in service but an irresponsible act, a consumer commission in Nagpur observed while directing an amusement park to pay ₹ 4.75 lakh compensation over an engagement ceremony where guests were served expired bottled water and fly-infested sweets.
The commission ordered the operators of Fun N Food Village to pay damages for medical expenses, mental harassment, and loss of family prestige and refund the security deposit. It warned the establishment against serving expired food and beverages to consumers in the future and asked them to strictly adhere to the provisions of the Food Safety and Standards Act. The complainant further alleged that dead flies were found in the rasgullas served to the attendees. Following the consumption of contaminated food and expired water, several guests as well as the bride suffered from acute gastroenteritis and anxiety, requiring medical treatment and hospitalisation. The commission noted that serving unsafe food is a punishable offence under the Food Safety and Standards Act, emphasising that the establishment completely disregarded its legal duty to maintain quality and safety.
Serving expired food items at the public event, which included young children, “is not merely a deficiency in service, but an extremely negligent and irresponsible act endangering life and health,” the Additional District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission remarked in a recent order. “The opposite parties seriously endangered the health of the complainant and their guests by supplying expired food items and drinking water,” it stated.
