Bengaluru Officials Seal Gottigere Indira Canteen, Hoskote Zepto Facility

Food safety officials in Bengaluru sealed an Indira Canteen warehouse in Gottigere and a Zepto facility in Hoskote after inspection drives uncovered severe hygiene violations, including crawling rats and black worms in sugar sacks. The enforcement drive was conducted by the Food Safety Division of the Food Safety and Drug Administration Department across Gottigere, Lingarajapuram, Singasandra, and Hoskote taluk.

During the inspections, officers checked the main kitchens and food preparation units of three Indira Canteens located at Gottigere, Lingarajapuram, and Singasandra. Officials witnessed crawling rats, black worms in a sack of sugar, and unhygienic and poor storage conditions. The department also recorded non-compliant labelling, misbranding, and unsafe food-handling practices across all three canteen facilities. These findings led directly to the sealing of the Gottigere canteen warehouse.

Inspectors also targeted a Zepto quick-commerce facility operated by Nippon Express in Hoskote taluk. At this location, officials uncovered multiple safety violations, including unhygienic food handling, improper storage conditions, misbranding, and non-compliant labelling. The Zepto warehouse was sealed and served with a formal notice by the department.

Notices were issued to the food business operators of all three Indira Canteen establishments. The Food Safety Division recommended filing cases before the respective Adjudicating Officers for further legal proceedings against those responsible.

To determine the extent of contamination, officials collected various food samples for detailed laboratory analysis. The collected samples included essential items such as pulses, turmeric powder, cooking oil, jaggery, salt, sugar, alongside prepared food items taken directly from the kitchens.

The department stated that strict action will continue against food business operators violating food safety regulations, confirming that ongoing inspection drives will be conducted across the city to guarantee safe food.