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Karnataka FDA seals Indira canteen and quick-commerce warehouse
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Thursday, 13 August, 2026, 08 : 00 AM [IST]
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Our Bureau, Bengaluru
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Karnataka Food and Drug Administration have sealed the warehouses of an Indira Canteen at Gottigere in Bengaluru and a quick-commerce unicorn in Hoskote were sealed after officials found unhygienic food handling and storage conditions during an inspection drive.
This comes amid a crackdown on several star hotels and high-end restaurants in the city, they said. The State FDA inspected three kitchens of Indira canteens here through which the government serves highly subsided food, officials said.
Indira Canteens are the Congress government's flagship initiatives which were started by former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah during his previous stint from 2013 to 2018.
According to officials, the searches were conducted at three Indira Canteens at Gottigere and Singasandra in Bengaluru South and Lingarajapuram in Bengaluru North by a special team to inspect the quality, safety, storage, labelling and food handling practices at the main kitchens/food preparation units of these canteens. This was in accordance with the provisions of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, the Food Safety and Standards Rules, 2011, and the Food Safety and Standards (Licensing and Registration of Food Businesses) Regulations, 2011.
"During the inspections, various food safety violations were observed, including non-compliant labelling, misbranding, unhygienic food handling conditions and other violations of FSSAI requirements," the department said, in a statement.
In view of these violations, notices were issued. Adjudicating Officers for further legal action as per the provisions of the law, it said.
During the inspection, the officials said, samples of various food products, including pulses, turmeric powder, cooking oil, jaggery, salt, sugar and other prepared food items were collected from the concerned establishments and sent to the designated food laboratory for analysis to assess their quality and compliance with prescribed food safety standards.
The department warned of strict legal action against food business operators found violating food safety regulations. It will continue to undertake such special inspection drives to ensure that the public is provided with safe, wholesome, hygienic and quality food," it added.
Further the department has also issued an advisory to small hotels, dhabas, restaurants and other food service establishments which have been instructed to strictly comply with the guidelines in accordance with the FSSAI norms.
The Food Business Operators (FBOs) are required to follow the specified rules. The license holder needs to display the licence at a prominent place on the premises, while the cooking area must be clean, properly managed and well ventilated. There must be separate sinks for washing utensils, cleaning equipment and cleaning raw food. All raw food materials must be good quality and procured from reliable and approved sources. Quality and condition of food ingredients will be checked regularly, and appropriate measures needs to be taken to prevent spoilage," the advisory stated.
As per FSSAI regulations, “Food handlers will maintain a high standard of personal hygiene. Reuse of used cooking oil shall be avoided, and used cooking oil shall be managed and disposed of through authorised channels, as applicable. Pest control activities shall be carried out regularly, and proper records of such activities shall be maintained. Raw meat, fish/seafood and vegetables neds to be stored separately to prevent cross-contamination," it reads.
The advisory also stated that expired food products, spoiled fruits, vegetables, and food showing signs of fungal growth shall be immediately removed and disposed of safely. Unsafe artificial colours or unauthorised food additives must not be used in the preparation of food.
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