Railways Serves 58 Crore Meals Annually; Rs 5.13 Crore Fines Imposed Over Food Quality Violations

New Delhi, 7th August 2026: Indian Railways serves around 58 crore meals to passengers every year on average, with food quality-related complaints accounting for about 0.0008% of the meals served, according to information provided in the Rajya Sabha on Friday.

Based on food quality and hygiene-related complaints received over the past three years, the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) has taken penal action against licensees. The action includes fines totalling ₹5.13 crore, 54 show-cause notices and termination of six contracts. Licensees have also been debarred for violations related to food quality and hygiene.

The list of debarred licensees is published on the IRCTC website.

Railway and IRCTC officials, including Food Safety Officers, conduct regular as well as surprise inspections to monitor food quality, hygiene, safety and compliance with prescribed standards. The inspections cover food safety, staff deployment, equipment maintenance, cleanliness and food handling, storage and preparation practices.

To improve food quality and hygiene, meals are supplied through designated Base Kitchens, with modern Base Kitchens being commissioned at identified locations. CCTV cameras have also been installed in Base Kitchens to enable real-time monitoring of food preparation.

Indian Railways has also introduced several measures for monitoring food safety, including the use of shortlisted and branded raw materials, deployment of Food Safety Supervisors at Base Kitchens and IRCTC supervisors on trains.

QR codes have been introduced on meal packets supplied on trains. These codes provide passengers with information such as the date of packing, name of the licensee and FSSAI licence number.

Base Kitchens and Pantry Cars undergo regular deep cleaning and periodic pest-control activities. FSSAI certification has been made mandatory for catering operations, while regular food sampling is undertaken as part of the monitoring mechanism.

IRCTC also conducts training programmes for catering staff covering communication, customer service, courteous behaviour, service standards, personal grooming and hygiene. Third-party audits are carried out to assess hygiene and food quality in Pantry Cars and Base Kitchens, along with customer satisfaction surveys.

The information was provided by Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw in response to a question in the Rajya Sabha on Friday.