LAHORE: The Punjab Food Authority (PFA) swooped on two five-star hotels in Lahore on Friday as part of its drive to hunt those compromising pure food, cleanliness and hygiene parameters.

A team headed by PFA Director Ayesha Mumtaz reached the hotels on The Mall and imposed Rs75,000 fine on each of them. The team first reached the Pearl Continental Hotel and inspected its Sakura and Dampukht restaurants’ kitchens. During inspection, the officials found faulty drainage system, storage of leftover meal and a lack of employees/workers’ hand-washing arrangements there.

It also visited the bakery section and found food items of various brands labeled as hotel’s own products and that too had no date of manufacturing and expiry.

Know more: More eateries sealed; milkmen penalised

The team also inspected the Avari Hotel and found inappropriate cleanliness arrangement. It also found disorder in storing/freezing of various food items in the chillers and use of drums at the hotel’s bakery section. At the kitchen of the hotel’s restaurant a la Carte, the team observed inappropriate cleanliness arrangement and storing of leftover meal.

PFA imposes Rs75,000 fine on each

“At PC hotel, we found jam of a famous food company and the hotel administration showed it as its own product by labeling it. There was no date of manufacturing or expiry mentioned on the label. So it is unfair and illegal to hide label of famous company product,” Ms Mumtaz told Dawn. She said she had already told the hotel admin to avoid doing so but it didn’t bother. She said one side of the kitchen drainage system was also found to be faulty, causing hygiene issues. She said storing the leftover meal was another issue in the kitchen.

As for Avari, she said, they also had more or less the same issues. She said had she found the food item (jam) expired, she would have sealed the hotel. In their kitchen, there was improper cleanliness. Similarly, they also had the leftover meal stored in the kitchen.

She said no one approached her for any kind of relaxation to both hotels. “I think it is better to leave the job rather than show leniency on enforcement of rules and regulations,” she said and added that the latest action against the top hotels was a clear-cut message that no one was above law.

She said she would revisit the hotels in the next couple of days to see whether they had improved the arrangements. Notices would be served on both on Saturday (today), she added.

Meanwhile, the PFA team discarded 1,160 liter substandard milk after it checked a number of milk sellers/men at the city’s entry/exit points -- Saggian, Thokar, Babu Sabu and Shahdara. It also sealed Punjab Bakery in Gowalmandi for selling substandard and expired food items, broken eggs etc.

The team imposed heavy fine on the management of Big Man fast food outlet in Shadman for lacking proper cleanliness.

Another team in Iqbal Town sealed Hafiz Sweets and imposed heavy fine on Italian Pizza on Raiwind Road for flouting the health hygiene regulations. It also imposed fine on BFC outlet on PIA Road.

Gulberg Town PFA team sealed Burger Corner at Mini Market. Shalimar Town PFA team imposed heavy fines on Khan Bakers (Ghoray Shah Road) and MS Food (Swami Nagar) whereas Aziz Bhatti PFA team imposed fine on Asian dairies.

Published in Dawn, July 25th, 2015

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