NEW DELHI: A month after reporting mismanagement in the hostel messes, AIIMS New Delhi is planning to build an international mess in the premises. The sources said that the matter was discussed with the new director, Dr M Srinivas, and a decision is expected to be taken soon.
“Deliberations are on to open an international mess inside the premises. The proposal was discussed with the institute director,” an official said. The development comes after a major discrepancy in the functioning of messes came into light last month.
A hostel mess and a cafe in the campus were shut down in August after finding several irregularities and unhygienic conditions following uproar by the resident doctors, who said that the mess, if allowed to run, could have caused major health issues.
The Food Safety Department of the government took a suo moto cognizance of the matter after medicos highlighted irregularities related to the hygienic conditions and poor quality of food, such as rotten vegetables, live rats in the utensil cleaning area, lizards in the flour storage area, and mess workers working without gloves or aprons.
The department conducted an inspection and found that in most of the kitchens, the food was kept in containers without lids, there were uncovered garbage bins, the raw materials were not stored properly and some of the kitchens did not have separate areas for vegetarian and non-vegetarian food.
The doctors complained that the irregularities have been present for a long time and that the mess vendors have been repeatedly warned.