Bengaluru, Karnataka Minister U T Khader on Monday launched a QR code system to report food and drug safety violations and said inspections would be expanded to hostels, educational institutions, railway canteens, flight catering services and other establishments.
He felicitated Food Safety and Drug Administration Commissioner Srinivas K and his team for their recent statewide inspections. “Going forward, we do not want to wait for complaints to reach us. We cannot be everywhere and inspect everything ourselves. “At the same time, we want to create awareness among the public that everything is not necessarily safe. When people go to a hotel or any other place to eat, they should think about these issues carefully and not take food safety for granted,” he added. Khader particularly warned PG accommodation owners against compromising on food and safety standards.
A total of 63 three-star and five-star hotels, eight warehouses, four international restaurant outlets within BBMP limits and 30 food business operators were inspected. Therefore, we have developed a QR code.
Anyone with information or a complaint about food safety or drug and pharmacy-related violations can use it to report the matter to us,” he said, claiming that Karnataka was the first state to introduce such a mechanism. “Zepto and Zomato, as well as multinational restaurant chains including KFC, McDonald’s, Domino’s and Burger King, pubs and other establishments were among those inspected,” he said. Several food items and products were seized during the inspections, he said, adding that the exercise would be taken to the grassroots level.
