Making our beaches more appetising

Juhu Beach and Girgaum Chowpatty are headed for a clean-up, but not of the conventional kind. A report in this paper stated that the Food Safety & Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will soon convert these popular places into 'Clean Street Food Hubs'.

The timeline is March-end for the foodie transformation of these tourist-friendly places. Street food at the numerous stalls on these beaches is going to become more hygienic both in presentation and preparation.

The aim is to upgrade street food and the trigger for this action is complaints about unhygienic conditions received by officials. Existing vendors will be sensitised about all the required parameters, like use of potable water, garbage bags and proper disposal of unused foods.

The vendors must not cook in oil that has high saturated fat that causes heart-related problems. Once satisfied that the required changes are made, places will be declared as a clean street food hub. This is a welcome and happy move.

We must now see that the methodology used for implementation works, and there is consistency in this endeavour. If this proves viable and works, the initiative must be extended to other parts of the city. However, it needs to first take off and be sustained at these beaches, so that the clean label sticks and holds meaning.

We are moving into high tourist season, especially at these beaches, which tend to get crowded post examinations in May. Good, affordable food is a must. Visitors, too, bear the onus of cleanliness at these stalls.

They must dispose used plates and cutlery in the correct manner and avoid food spillage. Every initiative is a two-way street and traffic moves smoothly when there is discipline both ways.

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