Karnataka to Deploy QR Codes at Eateries and Pharmacies for Safety Complaints

The Karnataka government will introduce QR codes at hotels, eateries, and pharmacies across the state to enable consumers to report food and drug safety violations directly to authorities, Health Minister U T Khader announced on Monday.

The system has been developed by the Food Safety and Drugs Administration in collaboration with the Centre for e-Governance. Once implemented, the QR codes will allow members of the public to lodge complaints and track the status of their grievances. Khader noted that Karnataka will be the first state in the country to launch such a mechanism.

The government stated that the QR-based platform is intended to make enforcement more responsive by giving consumers a direct channel to alert officials without navigating lengthy complaint procedures. Alongside the QR code rollout, the state government also plans to establish a dedicated toll-free number and a call centre to handle incoming public grievances.

The initiative is being introduced amid an intensified statewide enforcement campaign targeting food safety and hygiene non-compliance. As part of this drive, department officials have carried out inspections at hotels, roadside eateries, food warehouses, and government-run hostels, seizing several products found to be expired, mislabelled, or otherwise unfit for consumption.

According to inspection figures released by the department, officials examined 629 Backward Classes hostels across the state, collecting 1,860 food samples for testing. They also visited 331 Social Welfare Department hostels, where another 556 food samples were gathered.

In addition to educational and welfare facilities, authorities conducted inspections across transport hubs. Officials checked 889 food establishments operating at 186 bus stations, subsequently issuing formal notices to 206 premises over unhygienic conditions.

Alongside enforcement measures, the department reported that 11,370 food business operators have been trained under the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India’s Food Safety Training and Certification programme.