A passenger aboard the Vande Bharat Express from Rani Kamlapati to Jabalpur Junction on February 1 was shocked to find a dead cockroach in the meal provided by the Indian Railways Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC).
The traveller shared multiple photos of the contaminated food on X, formerly known as Twitter, triggering concerns about the food quality on Indian trains. Responding to the incident, IRCTC also addressed the widely circulated post.
Dr Shubhendu Keshari, the passenger, posted images of the non-vegetarian meal served during his journey on the Vande Bharat Express, clearly showing the dead cockroach inside the food. Alongside his complaint about the unhygienic food, Dr. Keshari also shared a photo of it with the Jabalpur station. In his post, Mr. Keshari wrote, "I was traveling on 1/02/2024 train no. 20173 RKMP to JBP (Vande Bharat Exp) I was traumatized by seeing a dead COCKROACH in the food packet given by them."Also Read | Passenger Finds Insect in Egg Biryani Onboard Gol Gumbaz Express Train, Shares Photo of Meal on Social Media
IRCTC promptly responded to the situation, offering sincere apologies for the unpleasant experience and imposing a significant fine on the service provider responsible. "Sir, our sincere apology for the experience you had. The matter is viewed seriously, and a hefty penalty has been imposed on the concerned service provider. Moreover, monitoring has been strengthened at the source," IRCTC stated. Railway Seva also confirmed that a complaint had been filed and provided a complaint number to the passenger.
This incident is not the first of its kind on the Vande Bharat Express. In a previous occurrence in July, a passenger traveling from Bhopal to Gwalior found a cockroach in the meal provided by IRCTC, further highlighting concerns about food hygiene on trains.