Tests show food not contaminated: Railway on Shatabdi Express incident

Railways today said it found no evidence of food contamination after 14 passengers complained of discomfort folowing breakfast on board the Puri-Howrah Shatabdi Express.

It claimed that the passengers could have suffered from indigestion as they had self-cooked meal late in the night at a hotel before they boarded the early morning train.

At least 14 passengers were admitted to Railway Hospital at Kharagpur when they complained of uneasiness and started vomiting after allegedly eating the non-vegetarian food served on the train on Wednesday.

"A detailed investigation has found that the 14 passengers were travelling together and they had eaten a meal cooked by themselves late at night.

"They had checked out of the hotel at 4:30 am and it seems that their discomfort was caused by indigestion. Also, the sample test we conducted on the food they had eaten showed no abnormalities," said Director, Information and Publicity, Railway Board, Ved Prakash.

Prakash claimed that according to food standards norms, the salmonella commonly associated with eggs, meat and poultry usually showed symptoms between eight to 48 hours after consumption and the passengers had felt discomfort within hours of boarding the train, so it couldn't have been caused by the on board food.

However, the railways held a high-level meeting on catering today, where it was decided that a food safety officer will be appointed in every division.