BENGALURU: Bengaluru South City Corporation officials sealed 19 paying guest (PG) accommodations due to poor hygienic conditions in their kitchens.
The officials also imposed penalties and collected a total of Rs 61,000 from the owners, warning them of strict action if they failed to comply with prescribed norms.
According to officials, the Bengaluru South City Corporation (BSCC) conducted inspections on Thursday of PG accommodations operating in Jayanagar, Bengaluru South, BTM Layout and Bommanahalli Assembly constituencies.
The inspections focused on the availability of basic facilities such as safe drinking water, overall cleanliness, kitchen hygiene, safety measures, proper toilet facilities, installation of fire safety equipment, CCTV cameras and possession of FSSAI certification.
Earlier, the East City Corporation had also sealed over 20 PGs for hygiene and other violations. “PG establishments found lacking in these essential facilities were issued notices. In Jayanagar, 12 PGs were inspected and three were shut down due to unhygienic kitchens.
Similarly, in Bengaluru South, four out of 18; in BTM Layout, three out of 24; and in Bommanahalli, nine out of 32 PGs were shut down over similar issues. Unhygienic kitchens may lead to serious health hazards, and hence fines were imposed and establishments were sealed,” said a senior official from the corporation.
Last month, a similar crackdown was conducted by the Bengaluru East City Corporation, during which over a dozen PGs were sealed due to unhygienic kitchens and operation without valid approvals from civic authorities.
Meanwhile,the Paying Guest Owners’ Welfare Accommodation president, Arun Kumar, welcomed the move and said most of the PGs, that is around 70 percent, are in East City Corporation, and many of them are in contentious buildings and also lack hygiene. “The crackdown will bring discipline among owners and curb illegal PGs,” he said.