Rotten meat, gulal in food: Bengal food scare before Durgotsava
What's the story
A state-wide food safety drive in West Bengal before the Durga Puja has unearthed shocking violations at eateries, sweet shops, and bakeries. The inspections were launched after Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari inaugurated a food safety week on September 1 at Kolkata's Hogg Market. Inaugurating the campaign, Adhikari said the government would maintain "zero tolerance" toward food adulteration. During these raids, officials seized large quantities of rotten meat, stale prawns, and spoiled dairy products.
Safety initiative
Inspections part of week-long food safety drive
During inspections at a major shopping mall in Madhyamgram, North 24 Parganas, food safety officials discovered several kilograms of rotten meat stored in refrigerators of different food-court outlets.
The meat had visible fungal growth, indicating it had surpassed its expiry date.
Following these findings, the Food Safety Department revoked the licenses of nearly all eateries within the mall.
Others
Restaurants in Digha and Tangra found with adulterated food
In Kolkata's EM Bypass area, surprise inspections at three Chinese restaurants on Wednesday led to the seizure of over 40kg of stale meat.
Notices were also issued to two popular restaurants in Baduria and Dadpur, Hooghly.
A chaat shop in Salt Lake lost its license after inspectors found it using contaminated ingredients.
Food safety checks in Digha also revealed serious violations, with chemical-based colors discovered in biryani at hotels across the coastal town.
Scandal revisited
Echoes of the infamous carcass meat scandal
The recent inspections have brought back memories of the 2018 carcass meat scandal.
Back then, meat from dumpyards was preserved with chemicals and sold as frozen products in shopping malls.
The racket was suspected to have continued for nearly a decade and led to widespread outrage across West Bengal.
To quell fears, popular Bengali film stars were roped in by the government to promote meat consumption after the scandal broke out.