Bihar's Food Safety Department has intensified a statewide crackdown on substandard food products, inspecting 531 establishments under a special campaign launched on the directive of Health Minister Nishant Kumar. The drive, aimed at ensuring safe, hygienic and quality food across the state, has resulted in licence suspensions, seizures of adulterated goods, and prosecution proceedings against violators.

Scale of the Campaign

Patna recorded the highest number of inspections at 87 establishments, covering hotels, restaurants, sweet shops, dairies, fast-food outlets, packaged drinking water units and online food retailers. Across Bihar, the drive has led to the suspension of licences of two establishments and the initiation of prosecution proceedings against 15 others for violations of food safety standards. The department warned that violations could attract imprisonment of up to three months and a fine of up to ₹3 lakh under applicable provisions.

Key Seizures and Violations Found

Enforcement actions unearthed a wide range of violations. At Santosh Sweets in Vijay Nagar, officials seized 3,344 kg of milk cake and 112 kg of peda, valued at approximately ₹5.24 lakh. At Govardhan Sweets, action was taken against 170 kg of foul-smelling sweets and paneer. Across Patna district, enforcement measures involved around 15,340 litres of packaged drinking water, 155 kg of gulab jamun, 96 kg of rasgulla and other products.

During inspections on 21 October, serious violations were detected at outlets of Barbeque Nation, KFC and Pizza Hut. At Barbeque Nation on Buddha Marg, 30 kg of foul-smelling paneer and 4 kg of rice were seized and destroyed, and the use of 15 kg of pre-packaged chicken was prohibited. At its Fraser Road outlet, insects were found in bread packets and 20 litres of used cooking oil were destroyed. At KFC on Boring Canal Road, the use of 835 plastic cups intended for industrial use was prohibited.

On 22 October, officials seized and destroyed 40 litres of expired Amul milk at a Blinkit store. At a 9-to-9 store in SK Nagar, they seized and destroyed 120 litres of expired ghee, 49 kg each of whole wheat flour and refined flour, and 6 kg of spices.

Violations at Major Hotels

Inspections at prominent hotels — including Gargi Grand, Pataliputra Exotica, The Panase and Hotel Maurya — revealed deficiencies in kitchen hygiene, food storage practices, staff health certificates and water quality testing. In some establishments, vegetarian and non-vegetarian food items were found stored together. The establishments were given 14 days to rectify the shortcomings.

Districts Beyond Patna

Over the past three months, inspections extended well beyond Patna, covering 41 establishments in Rohtas, 40 in Saran, 37 in Gopalganj, 27 in Siwan, 26 in Gaya, 24 in Vaishali and 20 in Muzaffarpur. The report noted no inspections in Sheikhpura and Sheohar. In Vaishali, 22,992 litres of packaged drinking water were seized from units operating without valid licences. In Bidupur, 328 kg of adulterated paneer worth ₹85,280 was destroyed. Similar enforcement actions were reported in Samastipur, Saharsa, Siwan, Gopalganj, Munger, Purnea, Madhepura, Rohtas and Kaimur. In Hajipur, a hotel's licence was suspended and operations halted after its kitchen was found to be unhygienic.

Enforcement Mechanism and What's Next

To strengthen enforcement capacity, qualified Health Department officials have been appointed as Food Safety Officers following 14 days of foundational training and 26 days of on-the-job training. Officials have been directed to constitute inspection teams and upload action reports to the FoSCoS portal. Health Minister Nishant Kumar has made it clear that public health cannot be compromised, and inspections will continue with a particular focus on milk and dairy products, sweets, edible oils, spices, hotels, restaurants and online food businesses.