The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Maharashtra, has suspended the food licences and registration of five food and beverage outlets operating at the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) premises in Bandra Kurla Complex after inspections found eateries were being operated by another entity, M/s Shirke Infrastructure, despite the licences being issued in MCA’s name. The inspections also uncovered a string of hygiene, storage and food-handling violations.

The action covers Permit Room, Pavilion, Mediterranean, Oriental Swing and Clubway & Pastry Counter.

All five outlets were inspected on August 20, and the suspension orders were issued on August 21.

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“The Mumbai Cricket Association had been granted four separate licences for four different restaurants and one registration certificate for a snack counter under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, to conduct food business. Instead, in violation of the licence conditions, M/s Shirke Infrastructure, an establishment not eligible to conduct food business, was found to be conducting food business there unauthorisedly. Therefore, the four licences and one registration certificate granted by the administration have been suspended with immediate effect,” an FDA official told .

“We realised this after we checked the invoices for raw material procurement and found that they were issued to M/s Shirke Infrastructure. We then checked the guests’ invoices and found that those too were issued by M/s Shirke Infrastructure,” he added.

According to the FDA’s press note issued on Monday, officials also found several violations of Schedule 4, Part II of the Food Safety and Standards (Licensing and Registration of Food Businesses) Regulations, 2011.

Common violations across the outlets included ice buildup inside refrigerators, unclean door gaskets, poor temperature calibration, slippery and unclean flooring near kitchen entrances, and unclean equipment, plates and containers.

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Inspectors also reported spoiled agricultural produce, inadequate inspection of incoming raw materials, unhygienic thawing of frozen food and failure to conduct regular checks of edible oil for colour and odour. The inspection reports also noted the absence of Food Grade/Conformity certificates for food-contact packaging. At Oriental Swing, inspectors also found peeling ceiling plaster and faulty lighting fixtures.

As part of its enforcement drive, the FDA also suspended the licence of China Town Fast Food Centre in Mulund, mid-day meal centre in Kurla operated by Sankalp Mahila Audyogik Utpadak Sahakari Sanstha, and of Café Cadell and Lenexis Foodworks Private Limited in Mahim. Lenexis Foodworks Private Limited operates QSR brands including Chinese Wok, Big Bowl and The Momo Co.