Indian Railways has responded after food safety inspections at railway stations in Karnataka found expired products and non-permitted colours in food. The inspections, carried out by the Karnataka Food Safety and Drug Administration (FSDA), have raised concerns over food safety at railway stations.

In a statement, South Western Railway (SWR) said it has already launched a 14-day special food safety drive across all its divisions. The drive covers checks on hygiene, cleanliness, FSSAI licences, expiry dates of food products and food-handling practices at catering and vending outlets.

The zonal railway said that its monitoring covers 428 catering establishments across the Bengaluru, Mysuru and Hubballi divisions, along with pantry cars and base kitchens. It added that Railway food safety officials conducted 1,243 inspections and tested 528 food samples in 2025-26, while 271 inspections and 170 sample checks have already been carried out up to July 2026.

The railway said action is taken against vendors found violating food safety rules, including issuing show-cause notices, imposing financial penalties and terminating contracts against defaulting Food Business Operators (FBOs).

Food safety checks find hygiene lapses, expired products at Karnataka railway stations

Earlier in the day, the FSDA conducted inspections at 36 railway stations in Karnataka and found the suspected use of non-permitted colours in sweets, expired dairy products and other food items, as well as fungal growth in vegetables.

According to the FSDA, the inspections covered 112 food establishments across stations including KR Puram and Mysuru. The teams inspected railway canteens, hotels and and other food establishments at railway stations.

During the inspection, the food safety department found several hygiene and safety lapses at the food establishments. Samosas were stored in cardboard boxes, while prepared vadas were kept on newspapers. Chutney was stored in plastic buckets not meant for food storage, and some food items were packed in newspapers for serving.

Story continues below this ad

Officials also found savoury food packets without proper labelling and noticed that food registration certificates were not prominently displayed. It also found the suspected use of non-permitted colours, including yellow in jalebi and pink in khoa peda.

The inspection also found expired Nandini curd and Dodla standardised milk packets at a railway station in Haveri district. At some food preparation units at Mysuru Railway Station, idlis were found to have been prepared using plastic material.

Press note regarding the special inspection drive conducted on food stalls at railway stations by the Food Safety Division of the Department of Food Safety and Drug Administration, under the guidance of the Honorable Minister for Health and Family Welfare, Shri U.T. Khader.… pic.twitter.com/xVMH6Cbi17

— Karnataka Health Department (@DHFWKA) August 20, 2026

Chapati packets without the required labelling details were also found being sold. Officials observed fungal growth on onions and vegetables and unhygienic conditions at a hotel food establishment at KR Puram Railway Station. The cases relating to the sale of expired food items were also detected at some food establishments.