KARAIKAL: Food safety officials have been inspecting stalls and hotels in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry selling non-vegetarian foods, but residents of Karaikal are unsure as to when inspection will begin here.
According to sources, Karaikal does not have a food safety officer or food inspector and a team comes from Puducherry for inspection, perhaps once in a year. Officials said they are short in numbers and recruitment is rare as well.
An official from Puducherry said, "We have received verbal instruction from the health secretary in Puducherry and are currently inspecting eateries in the Puducherry district. The instruction was to monitor the situation carefully for a couple of weeks. We will visit Karaikal soon."
Karaikal district is also a tourist destination and people arrive here specifically for cheap liquor. Hundreds come to neighbouring districts like Nagapattinam, Mayiladuthurai and Tiruvarur and visit the bars in the Karaikal district every day. There are dozens of restaurants which sell dishes like marinated grilled chicken and marinated Shawarma. Mandi Biriyani is another dish preferred by locals and visitors. There are also eateries which sell fried fish right next to the beach. Their standards are yet to be inspected.
A Prabakar, an activist and resident of Thirunallar said, "When officials from Puducherry come on a visit, the eateries are not surprised. It becomes news by the time the teams arrives at Karaikal. Many eateries have ample time to discard what they have to and prepare for the inspection."
The officials do not deny the allegation, and say that they need more personnel to carry frequent, surprise inspection. It may be noted that residents of Karaikal have been demanding to set up a unit of
food safety officials for the enclave.
AST Ansari Babu, another resident said, "We see large chunks Shawarma cones skewered across many eateries in Karaikal every night. It is disturbing to think whether those cones would be used the next day or thereafter."