KMC Food Inspectors Knock on Mall Eatery Doors, Discards Meat in a Central Kolkata restaurant
Times of India | 7 September 2026
Kolkata: The Kolkata Municipal Corporation’s food safety drive reached the food courts and restaurants in some of the city’s top malls — South City, Acropolis and Metropolis at Hiland Park — on Sunday.
Inspection teams also visited multiple restaurants in Bentinck Street and Waterloo Street including the popular New Aliah Hotel that serves Mughlai and north Indian delicacies.
KMC commissioner Smita Pandey told TOI that the civic body intends to check the kitchen of all restaurants and eateries in the city at least once before Durga Puja, a mission that many said would be an uphill task. “We would like to check all kitchens before Durga Puja. This is our target,” she said. Surprise visits to restaurants and eateries are underway across the state.
At the New Aliah hotel, the KMC team objected to the way the uncooked chicken and mutton had been stored. The entire stock of meat present in the restaurant when the team visited around noon had to be thrown away.
“About 5 kg mutton and about 15 kg chicken was thrown away. I told them that the stock was procured on Sunday morning and it was freshly cut stock. They did not listen to us. The KMC team said we must keep everything with the date when they were first stored, but this was not something for storage. The entire stock would have been consumed by the day’s end,” said Mohammad Shamim, the manager of New Aliah Hotel. “We could not serve biriyani to our customers in the afternoon,” said Shamim.
Amit Bajoria, owner of Lord of the Rings, Warehouse Cafe and Veneto at the South City Mall, said the inspection team suggested them to keep the food for the staff in stainless steel containers instead of aluminium ones. “They were happy with 90% of our measures. There were about 10% that needs improvement. We will soon address them,” said Bajoria.
South City Mall’s food court has 23 outlets. Besides, the mall has 8 restaurants.
A team also visited Acropolis Mall’s food court and the restaurants in the mall.
In a statement, South City Mall said they maintained stringent standards of food safety, hygiene and compliance across the F&B establishments on their premises. “During today’s inspection by the Food Safety Department and local authorities, all applicable requirements were found to be in order, with no lapses reported at our mall. As one of Kolkata’s leading retail and lifestyle destinations, we remain committed to maintaining the highest standards of safety, hygiene and customer experience across the mall.”
KMC has already suspended licences and served notices to establishments that did not conform to Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) guidelines.
Non-conforming food means food that is “unsafe to eat”, or it is “sub-standard” or “there is defect in labelling”, said a KMC official. “Unsafe food is highly injurious to health. Food containing Metanil Yellow, a dye, is unsafe. Metanil Yellow is carcinogenic and is often used in biryani instead of saffron. It is also used as an illegal adulterant to brighten the appearance of turmeric,” said an official.
Hotel & Restaurant Association of Eastern India (HRAEI) president Sudesh Poddar welcomed the drive and said it kept restaurateurs on their toes and was good for customers. “These checks happen periodically. This year, the CM had asked for intensive checks as part of Food Safety Week. We always tell our members to maintain hygiene. The kitchen should be clean, food should be stored in gastronomical pans made of stainless steel and not plastic bags. Different food items require refrigeration at different temperatures. They should be adhered to as per FSSAI norms. In addition, those in the kitchen should have close cropped nails, wear a cap, undergo a medical checkup at least once a year and keep the kitchen area neat and clean,” he said.