Bhubaneswar: A food safety team of Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) found deep-fried pani puri shells stored inside the latrine during a raid on a manufacturing facility here on Wednesday, raising serious concerns over public health and food safety standards. The making unit was sealed.
Rotten boiled potato seized during the raid
The team seized nearly three quintals of rotten boiled potatoes, food colour, 50 sacks of dry pani puri, hundreds of litres of tamarind water, stale chana and used edible oil and destroyed those immediately to prevent their circulation in the market.Food safety officer Pratikshya Das Mohapatra said the team had acted on prior intelligence regarding unhygienic food preparation practices at the facility. “We had prior information about the unit preparing pani puri in unhygienic conditions. We seized and dumped the food items and served a show-cause notice to the operator,” Mohapatra said.The raid exposed alarming sanitary lapses at the unit, which reportedly prepared and distributed most of the key ingredients used in pani puri sold by roadside vendors daily. Given the scale of operations, authorities fear that a large number of consumers may have been exposed to potentially unsafe food products.The BMC has initiated further action against the unit and is examining possible violations under food safety regulations. Official sources said strict action would be taken against establishments found compromising public health through unsafe food handling and storage practices.The raid has once again highlighted concerns over the hygiene standards maintained by some food manufacturing units supplying popular street foods and underscored the need for regular inspections to ensure consumer safety.The raid has once again highlighted concerns over the hygiene standards maintained by some food manufacturing units supplying popular street foods and underscored the need for regular inspections to ensure consumer safety.The raid has once again highlighted concerns over the hygiene standards maintained by some food manufacturing units supplying popular street foods and underscored the need for regular inspections to ensure consumer safety.