Lok Sabha Question No. 3429 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-08-08
Subject: Survey of Street Food Vendors
Ministry: HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE
Asked by: Shri Avimanyu Sethi

## GOVERNMENTOFINDIA MINISTRY OFHEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE DEPARTMENTOFHEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 3429 TO BE ANSWERED ON 8 TH AUGUST, 2025

## SURVEY OFSTREET FOOD VENDORS

## 3429. SHRI AVIMANYU SETHI:

Will the Minister of HEALTH AND FAMILYWELFARE be pleased to state:

(a) whether the Government has conducted any recent nationwide or State-level survey to assess the food safety standards of street food vendors and local restaurants and if so, the details thereof;

- (b) the steps taken/proposed to be taken by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) to ensure regular inspection, testing and certification of food sold by street vendors and small eateries;
- (c) whether any action has been taken against establishments found violating safety and hygiene norms during the last three years, and if so, the details thereof, year-wise and State/UTwise;
- (d) whether the Government proposes to launch awareness campaigns or training programmes for street food vendors to improve hygiene and quality standards under schemes like Eat Right India and if so, the details thereof; and

(e) the measures being considered to promote affordable, hygienic and nutritionally safe food in urban and rural areas alike?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE (SHRI PRATAPRAO JADHAV)

(a) to (c): Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) is mandated to lay down science based standards for articles of food and to regulate their manufacture, storage, distribution, sale and import to ensure availability of safe and wholesome food for human consumption.

Section 31 (1) and 31 (2) of Food Safety and Standards (FSS) Act, 2006 provide that no person shall commence or carry on any Food Business except under a license/registration, whichever is applicable. Therefore, all Food Business Operators (FBOs) have to comply with prescribed standards and the provisions of Food Safety and Standards (Licensing and Registration) Regulations, 2011. Every FBO has to follow the Schedule 4 sanitary and hygienic requirements and other requirements as prescribed under abovementioned regulation based on the type and scale of the food business. The sub-regulation 2.1.1. (6) of above mentioned Regulation mandates food safety inspection of Registered Petty Food Manufacturers once a year by the Registering Authority or any officer or agency specifically authorized for the purpose.

The details of the inspections conducted for the last three years is given below, and State-Wise details is at Annexure-1 .

Further, FSSAI through State/ UTs and its regional offices conduct regular surveillance, monitoring, inspection and random sampling of food products to check compliance of the standards laid down under Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, Rules and Regulations made thereunder. In case where the food samples are found to be non-conforming, penal action is initiated against the defaulting Food Business Operators as per provisions of FSS Act, Rules and Regulations made thereunder.

(d) & (e): To enhance awareness and promote safe food practices among food handlers including street food vendors, FSSAI launched the Food Safety Training and Certification (FoSTaC) programme in 2017. This initiative offers training in food safety and standards for individuals engaged in food business-whether as food business operators or employees. Under FoSTaC, a specialized awareness course titled 'Street Food Vending' has been developed. Till now, more than 3 lakh street food vendors across the country have been trained through this programme.

FSSAI is carrying out a nation-wide initiative 'Eat Right India movement' to ensure food safety and hygiene for all citizens. It is a collective effort to transform the food ecosystem of the country. Under this initiative, Eat Right certificates are awarded to ensure food safety and hygiene in places where food is prepared or served.

FSSAI has designed Eat Right Street Food Hub certification programme to educate people about food safety and hygiene at Food Streets. It is a cluster based initiative, where food vendors are educated to maintain the food safety standards. Information, Education and Communication (IEC) materials are provided to display, enhancing visibility, building consumer trust, and encouraging one and all to eat safe and hygienic. There are 405 Eat Right Street Food Hub certified under Eat Right India.

Further, to extend outreach for on-the-spot food testing & dissemination of food safety information in remote areas, FSSAI had introduced Mobile Food Testing Laboratories (MFTLs) to all the States and UTs. The three key activities of the MFTLs are:-

- i. On-spot testing of food commodities;
- ii. Training to Food business operators &
- iii. Food safety awareness among Food business operators, Street Food vendors, General Public, School, institutes, organizations etc. FSSAI has deployed 305 MFTLs to 35 States/UTs across India till date.

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## Total Inspections conducted State/UT and year wise

| State                               |   FY2022-23 |   2023-24 |   2024-25 |
|-------------------------------------|-------------|-----------|-----------|
| Andaman AndNicobar Islands          |        1454 |       796 |       515 |
| Andhra Pradesh                      |         534 |       611 |       443 |
| Arunachal Pradesh                   |           7 |         2 |         4 |
| Assam                               |           4 |       255 |        28 |
| Bihar                               |           1 |        14 |         0 |
| Chandigarh                          |          14 |         0 |         0 |
| Chhattisgarh                        |         350 |       545 |       963 |
| Dadra and Nagar Haveli &Daman & Diu |         214 |        51 |        19 |
| Delhi                               |          24 |        41 |        30 |
| Goa                                 |        1204 |      1273 |      1462 |
| Gujarat                             |         643 |       852 |      1535 |
| Haryana                             |         470 |       341 |        33 |
| Himachal Pradesh                    |         587 |       173 |       155 |
| Jammu &Kashmir                      |        5396 |      3023 |      2703 |
| Jharkhand                           |          46 |        49 |       201 |
| Karnataka                           |        1602 |      3591 |      6367 |
| Kerala                              |        4802 |     10229 |     12105 |
| Ladakh                              |         119 |        72 |       219 |
| Lakshadweep                         |           0 |         3 |        16 |
| Madhya Pradesh                      |        1534 |      2711 |      3941 |
| Maharashtra                         |        1841 |      1436 |      1071 |
| Manipur                             |         113 |        70 |        84 |
| Meghalaya                           |           4 |        54 |       199 |
| Mizoram                             |           0 |         0 |        35 |
| Nagaland                            |          18 |        18 |        18 |
| Orissa                              |        1212 |      1460 |       968 |
| Puducherry                          |           0 |         0 |         0 |
| Punjab                              |         262 |       159 |       148 |
| Rajasthan                           |         107 |      1023 |      2259 |
| Sikkim                              |         142 |       110 |         0 |
| Tamil Nadu                          |        5409 |      3742 |      3053 |
| Telangana                           |         329 |       227 |        54 |
| Tripura                             |           1 |        70 |        68 |
| Uttarakhand                         |         559 |       294 |       373 |
| Uttar Pradesh                       |        9605 |      8483 |     12909 |
| West Bengal                         |         725 |       998 |       716 |

## Annexure-I