Health standing committee chairperson of Kozhikode Corporation S. Jayasree has urged people to maintain caution and avoid eating from wayside eateries against the backdrop of the rising number of food poisoning cases in the State.
Replying to an adjournment motion on the issue moved by Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) councillor K. Moideen Koya at the Corporation Council meeting on Monday, she brought the huge turnout at food festivals to the attention of the council. She stressed the need for creating awareness among traders against the sale of stale meat.
Mr. Koya demanded that the Corporation maintain continuous vigil against food poisoning and conduct regular inspections instead of taking action only when there was an issue. Health Officer A. Sasikumar said inspections were being conducted almost every day, and that the health squads were working round the clock. He added that the Corporation had collected ₹93,000 as fine from eateries in the last one month alone.
Congress councillor P.N. Ajitha highlighted the dearth of human resources to manage the situation when eateries were mushrooming in the city. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) councillor C.S. Sathyabhama demanded that the Corporation implement rules stringently and not encourage excuses.
Meanwhile, the Corporation decided to conduct inspections at commercial buildings to ensure that traders were not subletting property. It also decided to go ahead with the demolition of the Corporation rest house near the Government Medical College. It will be redeveloped to bring in more revenue for the Corporation. Similar buildings such as New Bazar and a few at Puthiyapalam will also be reconstructed in the near future.
PNB owes ₹12,53,656 to Corporation
Corporation Secretary K.U. Bini said the Punjab National Bank (PNB) owed ₹12,53,656 to the civic body in terms of interest for the money that was swindled from its accounts in the bank. Responding to a submission by Opposition leader K.C. Shobhita, she said the Corporation had served a demand notice on the bank, and that it was being followed up. The bank has agreed to credit it to the account by the end of the week, she said, and added that the Corporation had complained to the Banking Ombudsman and the Grievance Redressal Cell of the Reserve Bank of India about the embezzlement case.
