MCGM Commissioner Bhushan Varsha Ashok Gagrani and FSSAI CEO G Kamala Vardhana Rao Discuss Street Food Safety in Mumbai
Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], August 16: Bhushan Varsha Ashok Gagrani, Commissioner of the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM), recently chaired a meeting with officials from the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The meeting, led by FSSAI CEO G Kamala Vardhana Rao, focused on strategies to enhance the safety of street food in Mumbai.
The discussion centered on elevating Mumbai’s street food to meet global safety and hygiene standards by developing Healthy and Hygienic Food Streets (HHFS) in the city. Representatives from Thane, Nagpur, Nasik, and Pune Municipal Corporations, who are also involved in HHFS initiatives, attended the meeting.
MCGM Commissioner Gagrani highlighted Mumbai’s vibrant and diverse street food culture, which attracts both locals and tourists. He emphasized that stringent training of street food vendors would ensure the wide-scale availability of safe street food in the city, making it even more popular.
FSSAI CEO Rao mentioned that FSSAI’s Food Safety Training and Certification (FoSTaC) program provides food handlers with up-to-date knowledge on food safety and hygiene. He noted that FSSAI is significantly scaling up training programs across the country, which would also see a large increase in the number of trained street food vendors in Mumbai.
The meeting, held on August 13, also included KH Govindraj, Principal Secretary of the Urban Development Department (UDD), and Pritee Chaudhary, Regional Director of FSSAI West Region. Strategies for large-scale training and awareness programs in Mumbai were discussed.
FSSAI CEO Rao assured that the registration of food handlers is carried out as part of the FoSTaC program. He also welcomed the deployment of additional mobile food testing vans, known as ‘Food Safety on Wheels’ (FSWs), in Mumbai. These vans will empower consumers by providing easy access to food items tested on the spot.
Rao said that results for most of the tests carried out in the FSWs are provided to consumers on the spot and within a short duration. He added that FSWs would be able to reach all markets in Mumbai, similar to their deployment in many markets across Delhi ahead of the upcoming festive season.
Doubts Revealed
MCGM -: MCGM stands for Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai. It is the local government responsible for the city of Mumbai.
Commissioner -: A Commissioner is a high-ranking official in charge of a specific area or department. In this case, Bhushan Varsha Ashok Gagrani is the Commissioner of MCGM.
FSSAI -: FSSAI stands for Food Safety and Standards Authority of India. It is an organization that makes sure the food we eat is safe and healthy.
CEO -: CEO stands for Chief Executive Officer. This person is the head of an organization. G Kamala Vardhana Rao is the CEO of FSSAI.
FDA -: FDA stands for Food and Drug Administration. It is another organization that helps make sure food and medicines are safe.
Street Food Safety -: Street food safety means making sure the food sold on the streets is clean and safe to eat.
Healthy and Hygienic Food Streets (HHFS) -: HHFS are special areas where street food vendors follow strict rules to keep the food clean and healthy.
Mobile food testing vans -: These are special vehicles equipped with tools to test the safety and quality of food on the spot.
Thane, Nagpur, Nasik, and Pune -: These are cities in the state of Maharashtra, India. Officials from these cities also attended the meeting.
