The canteen at Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital in Chennai has been shut after the Food Safety Department found unhygienic kitchen conditions, improper food storage and inadequate staff hygiene. Officials suspended its licence and stopped the sale of food until corrective measures are completed.
The action follows complaints about the quality of food served at the government hospital, which is visited daily by thousands of patients and their attendants. The department had earlier inspected the canteen and issued an improvement notice, but hospital management did not complete the required rectification work, according to the report.
K Tamil Selvan, designated officer of the Food Safety Department in Chennai, said officials inspected the canteen after a complaint was received through the chief minister’s grievance cell three days before the latest inspection. The inspection found slippery and oily floors, damaged vessels and food stocks that had not been stored properly in freezers.
Officials also found that prepared food was not adequately covered and that visitors were being served in unhygienic conditions. Staff members were not wearing gloves or head caps while cooking and serving food, the department said.
“There were complaints about the quality of sambar, half-cooked rice, and the overall food quality,” Tamil Selvan said. The complaints were among several concerns raised about food served at the hospital canteen.
The canteen’s licence will be considered for renewal only after its management completes the required corrective measures and submits a letter from the hospital administration to the Food Safety Department. Officials will then conduct further inspections before deciding whether the outlet can resume operations.
The department also inspected a tea shop operating on the hospital premises and imposed a penalty of ₹10,000 for unhygienic conditions. An additional ₹5,000 penalty was imposed for using plastic and newspapers to wrap food for customers.
The tea shop is also set to receive an improvement notice from the Food Safety Department. The notices and penalties form part of the department’s response to food safety complaints at the hospital premises.
