Restaurants, government canteens in Mumbai voluntarily shut for repairs, deep cleaning as FDA crackdown intensifies

Restaurants and government canteens in Mumbai are voluntarily shutting down for repairs, deep cleaning, and renovations as the Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA) intensifies its enforcement crackdown. This comes after the FDA started suspending licenses and sharing images and videos of non-compliant establishments. Vijay Shetty, president of the Indian Hotel & Restaurant Association (AHAR), said that many of its member restaurateurs, who are often third-generation owners, have been proactively renovating, retraining staff, and hiring external help to avoid suspension.

Shetty explained that these establishments have low profit margins and struggle to find trained staff, leading to the majority of AHAR's members undertaking renovation work. Some have partially shut down their restaurants, while others are operating with reduced hours to allow for repairs and cleaning. Earlier this week, the Hotel and Restaurant Association (Western India) reported that they had trained and certified 4,018 hospitality professionals under the FDA's FoSTaC programme.

A Kerala restaurant in Mumbai is now cleaning its premises three times a day, with staff spending an additional 45 minutes each time, due to the monsoon season and increased pest concerns. Government canteens have also taken similar actions, such as shutting down their kitchens for repair work. An FDA official confirmed that MMRDA office, MMR Suburban District Collector's premises in BKC, and Kalina University's canteen have all been found shut.

Individual restaurants in South Mumbai, like Kala Ghoda's Ayub’s and Kalbadevi's Shree Thaker Bhojanalay, have recently shut down for various durations to carry out repairs and refresh their interiors.