Key Update

Municipal health officials fined unlicensed hotels in Pathanamthitta after discovering unhygienic conditions that posed serious food safety risks. Each hotel in the building where migrant workers lived—along the road to Pandalam Kadakkad Family Health Centre—was fined ₹10,000. Health and Food Safety Departments had inspected and shut down these hotels one-and-a-half weeks ago, but operators secretly reopened them in the evenings, endangering public health.

Unsafe Food Handling and Practices Exposed

Officials identified Tajmir Khathun, S.K. Sukumar, and Deluwar Hussain, all from Bengal, as the hotel operators in the Thonnalloor Sabu building. Workers were washing chicken with rice water in a restroom fitted with a European commode and cooking behind a dirty curtain. Both the kitchen and the serving areas lacked hygiene. Officials detected a strong foul smell at the entrance and seized spoiled chicken, highlighting serious risks of foodborne illness.

Severe Health and Safety Hazards in the Premises

Municipal Health Supervisor S.L. Zonal Sundar, Public Health Inspectors Sujitha S. Pillai and Amal P. Nair, and police led by SI R. Manoj Kumar conducted the operation, with Medical Officer Dr R. Harikumar and Health Inspector Raziya Begum present.

Officials found both buildings full of waste, structurally unsafe, and unhygienic in verandas, rooms, and restrooms. Garbage and wastewater flowed into a nearby paddy field, and authorities noted ten commercial LPG cylinders stored without safety measures. Children and women lived in these buildings, and officials warned that a fire could make rescue operations nearly impossible, adding to food safety and public health risks.

Authorities Take Legal Action to Protect Public Health

The municipal health department in Pathanamthitta registered cases against the building owners under relevant laws, aiming to prevent further risks to residents, patrons, and the wider community.

Source: Manoramaonline