GHMC cracks down on hotels using unstamped meat

The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) has cracked down on hotels and restaurants using "unstamped" meat and having unhygienic kitchen conditions.
It has recovered a fine to the tune of Rs 10 lakh after inspecting 165 hotels and restaurants in the city in the past few days.
"During the raids carried out by the health and sanitation wing of the civic body over the past few days, the officials checked for meat quality and cleanliness in kitchens," said a civic official.
"Hotels that had procured meat not having GHMC stamp and those keeping kitchen unhygienic were fined Rs 9,99,600. A total of 165 hotels and restaurants were inspected of which 119 were fined," said the official.

The civic body had earlier issued instructions to hotel managements and meat shops to procure only stamped meat from authorised GHMC slaughter houses.
"The managements were earlier warned to procure only stamped meat from GHMC slaughter houses," a GHMC official said.
"It was found that most hotels and shopkeepers were buying meat from private butchers, violating the rules and hence fines were slapped against such hotel managements," he said.
During the raids, some sweet shops were also fined for poor hygiene. In some cases, the owners of such hotels were also slapped with charges under IPC, the GHMC official added.