‘Cloud kitchens’ come under SDMC lens

Are you sure that the food that you order through delivery apps is actually prepared in a kitchen meeting the standard health trade norms? The public health department of South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) isn’t. It has now ordered a crackdown on the “cloud kitchens” operating illegally in south Delhi.

The additional commissioner (health) has directed the zonal deputy health officers that “all illegal cloud kitchens in their respective zones should be immediately closed”.

A senior civic official explained how the authorities were being taken for a ride. “Cloud kitchens operate in conjunction with online food delivery applications. These are basically take-away outlets without any dining facility. They simply operate as production units with a space for preparing food, which gets delivered to customers,” he added. Many of these outlets are operating out of unauthorised colonies while many in the rest of south Delhi also don’t have health trade licence, the official said.

“The only purpose is to cut down on delivery time and make profit but norms are being flouted to achieve them,” he pointed out. Another official said multiple restaurants were reportedly using one kitchen to cut down on delivery time.

In many cases, the health trade licence has been taken by a parent restaurant but the food being sold in its name is actually being prepared somewhere else with no regulatory supervision. “All such kitchens in the unauthorised colonies will either be closed or sealed while others need to take a separate licence,” the official clarified.

SDMC recently closed 10 “cloud kitchens” and will soon launch a drive to take action against the rest. A survey is being carried out in all four zones — Central, South, West and Najafgarh. “The Central zone has just seven authorised licensed kitchens, out of which three are operating from Okhla Industrial Phase I, two from Okhla Phase II, one from Tughlaqabad Extension and another from Kotla Mubarakpur. Similar kitchens are operating in all four zones,” an official said.

The main concern is maintaining hygiene standards. “In unauthorised colonies, many outlets don’t have a proper waste processing mechanisms. Unscientific disposal of waste is also creating problems for locals. We will issue notice to all such kitchens,” a senior official said.

The licensed restaurants will have an option to run these delivery-only kitchens only in regularised colonies but will have to take a separate licence, said the official. The units measuring more than 90sq m will also have to get a fire safety clearance.

The move will also boost SDMC’s coffer. Each outlet will have to pay a one-time registration fee of Rs 10,000 and a processing fee of Rs 1,000 while Rs 20,000 will be charged annually as the licensing fee.

Source:- Economic Times

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