Tamil Nadu: Nine people fell ill after consuming grilled chicken in Madurai

The incident happened on the night of February 4.

Following the complaints, officials from the Food Safety Department and the police launched a detailed investigation and initially penalised the restaurant for hygiene violations.

According to the Deputy Director of Health Services, out of the nine affected individuals, four were admitted to the Sholavandan Government Hospital, while the remaining five, who had mild diarrhoea, were taken to the Government Rajaji Hospital (GRH) in Madurai.

Two of them were discharged after receiving treatment at Sholavandan Hospital, while the others continue to receive medical care.

Recently, G Kamala Vardhana Rao, CEO of the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) stressed upon increasing the inspections of high-risk food establishments and periodical review of food testing laboratories in Tamil Nadu in a meeting with Lalvena, IAS, Principal Secretary and Food Safety Commissioner, Tamil Nadu.

Rao also discussed the ongoing work of development of Healthy and Hygienic Food Streets at various locations and urged the work to be expedited so that these hubs can be used by the public at the earliest.

The FSSAI CEO also visited the Southern Regional Office of FSSAI in Chennai and discussed the functioning of various divisions in the Regional office and the National Food Laboratory, Chennai, with senior officials.

Rao also discussed various issues related to Food Import Clearance while emphasizing on the importance of food import clearance process for ensuring the food safety to the consumers.

Highlighting the recent launch of Food Import Rejection Alert (FIRA) portal by FSSAI, Rao focused on the need of regular sharing of final fate of import food consignments rejected by FSSAI.

FIRA is a digital platform designed to provide timely updates and information about food import rejections by regulatory authorities and stated that it serves as a resource for exporters, importers, and other stakeholders in the food industry, helping them understand reasons for rejection and stay informed about regulatory compliance requirements. (ANI)