Hotels care two straws for norms

KOCHI: The seizure of stale and rotten food from hotels and restaurants around Kochi is a matter of concern for the public. But apart from conducting inspections in some of the restaurants in Fort Kochi and Mattanchery two weeks ago, the Kochi Corporation Health Department is yet to carry out a single raid in the city.The heavy rain is affecting the sale of most restaurants. But instead of disposing of the food, these hotels sell stale food to customers. “Most of the eateries are not following the health regulations,” said a top health official of the Kochi Corporation. He said that though the civic body had raided, warned and fined some hotels recently, the practice of selling stale food still continues. “Most of the hotels are not following the storing regulations. The food items were found inconsumable as the cooling system was not proper. They also use reused oil for cooking,” said the official. He said that the cancellation of licences of these hotels should be done immediately as a stringent measure to curb this practice. However, Kochi corporation Health Standing Committee chairman T K Ashraf said that the Health Department of the Kochi Corporation will conduct more inspections at the hotels and restaurants in the city in the coming days. “Special eight-member squads for East and West zones have been formed for the purpose.""The team consists of health inspectors and other officials from the department. The civic body will take strong action like the cancellation of licences of these hotels,” he said.