The Maharashtra Food and Drugs Administration has suspended the food licence of the Savitribai Phule Pune University girls’ hostel mess for 14 days after an inspection found cockroach activity, food hygiene violations and deficiencies in the mess’s cleaning and documentation practices.
The FDA team inspected the mess on October 6 after complaints about food quality and videos showing insects in food were circulated online. Ajinkya Umap, Food Safety Officer at FDA Shivajinagar, said the videos were forwarded to senior officials, following which the department was directed to take action.
During the inspection, officials recorded problems involving general cleanliness, the personal hygiene of food handlers and food-handling practices. The inspection also found that the mess did not have medical reports for food handlers or pest-control reports, according to the FDA officer.
Umap said he prepared an inspection report and submitted it online to senior assistant commissioner Imran Hashmi. A hearing was held on the basis of the report on October 8, after which the licence was suspended for 14 days.
The mess operator can undertake corrective measures during the suspension period and apply for reinstatement of the licence after 14 days. The FDA’s action affects food services at a university hostel, where students depend on institutional kitchens for regular meals and where food safety compliance has to be maintained through routine inspection, documentation and oversight.
The suspension is the second such action involving an SPPU mess in recent months. In June, the FDA suspended the licence of the university’s Refectory Mess after citing similar violations. Those findings included poor personal hygiene among food handlers, the absence of aprons, gloves and headgear, missing medical fitness certificates, and a lack of water-testing and pest-control records.
The earlier inspection also recorded vegetables chopped a day in advance, food stored in uncovered vessels and the use of rusted metallic vessels. The recurrence of related violations has prompted calls for stronger oversight by the university administration rather than relying only on action after complaints or inspections.
Abhishek Shelkar, president of the University Student Struggle Action Committee and a student member of the SPPU Canteen Quality Control Committee, welcomed the FDA’s action against the girls’ mess operator. He said the recurring nature of such incidents made permanent measures necessary to ensure safe and nutritious food for students.
Shelkar also called for an immediate decision to establish a central mess under the university’s direct control. The FDA’s order gives the current operator 14 days to address the recorded deficiencies before seeking reinstatement of the food licence.
