Kanpur: The UP Food Safety and Drug Administration (FSDA) department has suspended the licences of four online food stores and halted their operations for allegedly storing food items in unhygienic conditions during a statewide inspection drive.Under the ‘Shuddh Hi Shubh Hai’ (Purity is Auspicious) campaign, the department is inspecting warehouses, dark stores and food supply centres linked to e-commerce platforms. So far, 149 inspections have been conducted and 21 food samples collected for testing. The department has also recommended improvement notices in 79 cases.In Kanpur, inspections at many outlets revealed several irregularities. Officials found that the licences provided for controlled-atmosphere and cold storage facilities, but the required chambers had not been installed. They also found that a nominee’s name continued to appear on a licence despite the individual having resigned about two years ago.A violation of the prescribed 30% limit concerning the ‘best before’ period of certain confectionery products was also detected.
