The Minister of Railways Shri Pawan Kumar Bansal has said that for effective quality control in railway catering, arrangements are being tied up with food testing laboratories in addition to third party audit.

Presenting the Railway Budget for 2013-14 in Parliament today he said, state-of-the-art base kitchens are proposed to be set up in railway premises for better monitoring of quality of meals. The Minister said, ISO certification will now be insisted upon for all base-kitchens. He said, a Centralized Catering Services Monitoring Cell with a toll free number – 1800 111 321 has started functioning from 18th January, 2013 to facilitate redressal of complaints/suggestions on realtime basis.

MKP/AD/DB

(Release ID :92501)

Catering quality controls require external food testing and ISO certified base kitchens, plus a centralized monitoring and redressal line. Railway catering policy mandates arrangements with food testing laboratories and third party audits, proposes state of the art base kitchens within railway premises, and requires ISO certification for all base kitchens. A Centralized Catering Services Monitoring Cell with a toll free consumer line is established to receive and act on complaints and suggestions in real time, integrating audits with customer feedback to improve accountability and food quality.