Food safety dept raids popular shawarma joints in Hyderabad

Hyderabad: A task force from the food safety department of Telangana carried out raids at several shawarma joints in Hyderabad.

The inspections took place on October 16 at various eateries in Secunderabad, including Mujtaba Grills in East Marredpally, Shasha Sahandar Shawarma, and Rolls on Wheels outlets near Paradise Metro Station, as well as Sync Shawarma near Secunderabad East Metro Station and Asian Chow Chinese.

Violations at shawarma joints in Hyderabad

At Mujtaba Grills, the food safety team discovered synthetic food colouring which was subsequently discarded. At another shawarma joint in Hyderabad, Shasha Shawarma was found operating without a valid FSSAI license, while Mujtaba Grills and Rolls on Wheels were not displaying their food safety licenses.

The inspections further revealed multiple lapses in storage practices including lack of labelling and proper separation of raw materials, such as meat and paneer.

The Telangana commissioner of food safety also reported that several shawarma joints in Hyderabad were found to be unclean during the inspections.

Additionally, none of the shawarma joints in Hyderabad maintained health certificates for their food handlers which is a requirement set by the Telangana food safety department.

Restaurant in Hyderabad booked after cops fall ill

On October 4, the Karkhana police registered a case against a shawarma joint in Hyderabad after officials fell ill from consuming food at the eatery. The incident took place on September 24.

According to reports, the inspector and his driver fell ill after eating shawarma at Grill 9 restaurant. The Karkhana police stated, “It is a case of food adulteration, and the restaurant has been booked under Section 274 of the BNS.”

Section 274 of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanahita (BNS) states “Whoever adulterates any article of food or drink, to make such article noxious as food or drink, intending to sell such article as food or drink, or knowing it to be likely that the same will be sold as food or drink, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to six months, or with fine which may extend to five thousand rupees, or with both.”

In a similar incident, another shawarma joint in Hyderabad was shut down after 17 people became ill after consuming shawarma mixed with mayonnaise. The victims exhibited symptoms such as vomiting, diarrhoea, and other severe health issues after dining at Grill House in Alwal.

The Grill House was booked based on a complaint filed by Food Safety Officer (FSO) Lakshmikant under Sections 273 and 269 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

The manager of Grill House, Taufiq, has been arrested in connection with the incident, while the restaurant owner managed to shut down the establishment and escape before the police could apprehend him.