The food licence of the dining hall serving the girls’ hostel at Savitribai Phule Pune University has been suspended after the Food and Drug Administration found live cockroaches, unhygienic food preparation areas and missing food-safety records during an inspection, according to a report by Sakal – Pune.
The dining hall was operated by M/s Maratha Caterers, associated with Akash Mohite. The FDA action followed repeated complaints from students about the quality and safety of food served at the hostel. The complaints reportedly included cockroaches and insects in meals and breakfast, as well as foreign objects such as pins and staples.
Students had previously raised concerns with the university administration, alleging that the complaints did not lead to effective action. Following this, students approached the FDA directly with complaints about cockroach infestation and unhygienic conditions at the hostel dining facility.
FDA officials subsequently inspected dining facilities at the university. During the inspection of the girls’ hostel dining hall, the agency found live cockroaches in the food preparation area and its surrounding premises. The locations used for cooking and storing food were described as extremely unhygienic and hazardous to health.
The inspection also identified serious shortcomings in general cleanliness and in the personal hygiene of workers handling food. Required records and documents related to food safety were not available for examination, the report said. Based on the inspection, action was taken against the caterer and the dining hall’s food establishment licence was suspended.
The action has resulted in the closure of the dining hall serving residents of the girls’ hostel. The report did not specify how long the closure would continue or what immediate alternative food arrangements had been made for students. The university administration’s response was not available when Sakal – Pune contacted the relevant officials.
The incident raises an immediate administrative question for residential universities: how are outsourced food services inspected between regulatory visits, and who is responsible for acting on student complaints before conditions become a food-safety issue? In this case, the reported gap was not limited to one complaint or one meal. It involved the cleanliness of the preparation and storage areas, worker hygiene and the availability of mandatory records.
Abhishek Shelke, president of the University Students’ Struggle Action Committee, welcomed the FDA action and the decision to act against the dining hall operator. He said the university should implement permanent measures to ensure safe and nutritious food for students and take an urgent decision on starting a centralised dining facility under direct university control.
The next steps will depend on the university’s arrangements for hostel residents and on further action by the FDA against the caterer and the suspended food establishment. The university has not publicly responded to the action in the supplied report.
