FDA Commissioner Tukaram Mundhe Suspends Country Club Andheri Licence And Cancels Blinkit Vile Parle Unit Over Food Safety Violations
Food safety inspections across Mumbai have intensified as regulatory authorities cracked down on prominent eateries, cloud kitchens, and quick delivery storage hubs for failing basic hygiene standards. The Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration took direct enforcement action against eight commercial food outlets in the city. The regulatory measures targeted premises that failed to follow mandatory cleanliness and safe food handling rules. Officials suspended five operating licences and completely cancelled the registrations of three other food establishments after surprise inspection teams uncovered serious shortcomings in their everyday food management systems.
The widespread enforcement drive was led by senior Indian Administrative Service officer and state food commissioner Tukaram Mundhe. Known for strict administrative enforcement, Mundhe directed inspection teams to examine kitchens, storage rooms, and food dispatch centers across major western suburbs of Mumbai. The operation aimed to ensure that commercial hospitality brands and online delivery platforms do not compromise consumer health while processing and storing daily edible supplies.
Among the most high-profile actions taken during the drive was the outright cancellation of the food licence belonging to a Blinkit quick delivery center located along Swami Vivekananda Road in Vile Parle. Regulatory teams found that the grocery storage unit failed to maintain proper storage procedures, lacked necessary sanitation safeguards, and had gaps in steps needed to stop pests and contamination. Two other commercial entities, Copenhagen Hospitality in Vile Parle and EatClub in Bandra West, also had their food operational licences cancelled outright after inspectors discovered repeated health and hygiene non-compliance.
At the same time, the regulatory department ordered the immediate suspension of the food licence of the popular recreation center Country Club, situated in Andheri West. Visiting health officers documented severe hygiene deficiencies inside the kitchen areas, finding improper food preservation, poor cleanliness on the premises, and unhygienic handling of cooking ingredients. The club kitchen cannot serve meals or prepare food for members and guests until every single violation is rectified and confirmed by re-inspection teams.
Four other food outlets in Mumbai faced licence suspensions during the same enforcement action. These include Cafe Sultan located in Kalina, Lo Fresh Food Private Limited based in Marol, Suraj Lama Momos situated in Andheri West, and Cafe Pakeezah operating in Santacruz West. In each of these spots, inspectors flagged greasy and uncleaned kitchen corners, missing health certificates for kitchen handlers, improper cooling storage temperatures, and open food containers that were vulnerable to dirt and insect contamination.
The inspection teams also expanded their operations outside the immediate city limits to monitor food supply chains in the Konkan division. In Kalamboli located in Panvel, the authorities suspended the food licence of Rajidi Retail Private Limited with immediate effect after discovering serious maintenance failures. Department officials stressed that big corporate logistics companies and neighborhood eateries alike will face the exact same legal penalties if they ignore basic cleanliness standards.
Alongside kitchen checks, the administration launched state-level raids between one and five October to stop the circulation of prohibited and adulterated food items. Regional teams across Konkan, Pune, and Nashik carried out coordinated actions that led to the seizure of banned edible goods valued at over two crore rupees. Police complaints were registered against multiple warehouse owners and traders, resulting in more than twenty-five arrests, sealing of six storage facilities, and confiscation of several transport vehicles used to carry illicit stock.
Investigators also seized over thirty thousand kilograms of substandard, expired, or deceptively labelled food products with an estimated market value exceeding fifty lakh rupees. The seized items included expired chicken meat from cold storage units in Thane, unhygienic sweets transported from Gujarat into Akola, large quantities of substandard refined palmolein cooking oil in Aurangabad division, as well as adulterated paneer, cream, spices, and bakery snacks. All seized batches were pulled from commercial distribution and sent to state laboratories for chemical examination.
This latest crackdown forms part of a sustained regulatory push initiated after Tukaram Mundhe assumed charge of the state food administration. Since taking charge, the department has executed more than twelve thousand site visits and raids across Maharashtra. These inspections have resulted in the cancellation or suspension of nearly six hundred licences, the administrative sealing of over three hundred dirty restaurants, and the issuance of more than five thousand statutory improvement notices to food operators.
The state administration reminded consumers that access to clean, unadulterated food is a non-negotiable legal right. Food business operators were advised to run regular deep cleaning in their pantries, install proper refrigeration, train cooking staff in sanitation, and maintain clear records of supplier sources. Citizens who encounter rotten ingredients, dirty kitchens, or suspicious products have been urged to lodge official complaints through the dedicated toll-free helpline number set up by the department.