A video showing rats in cooking utensils, allegedly at a hostel mess of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Roorkee, has led to outrage among students. In the video, rats can be seen inside a frying pan and a pressure cooker filled with rice.
According to reports, the students found the rats on the afternoon of October 17 when they went to the mess for lunch. Some students ventured into the kitchen and were taken aback to find the rodents scurrying about, raising fears that about consuming contaminated food.
Watch the video here:
The video sparked a protest outside the mess, with many students demanding immediate action.
In response to the protest, IIT Roorkee has said that the claims made in the videos are misleading. In a statement, IIT Roorkee said that rats were discovered in a closed area of the mess, and that no food items were contaminated, Hindustan Times reported.
The institute said that after a preliminary investigation into the incident, they discovered that the video circulating on social media was recorded by students who entered the mess late at night. The statement added that the footage captured the rodents in a restricted area of the mess, where only empty utensils and non-edible items were stored. “No food items were found to be contaminated. The videos appear to be a deliberate attempt to misrepresent the situation,” the statement said.
A report in India Today quoted IIT-Roorkee's media in-charge Sonika Shrivastava as saying, “Immediate investigation has been started, and corrective action is being taken to ensure compliance with hygiene standards. The health and safety of the students remains the top priority. External special experts have been engaged to assess the situation and prevent such incidents in future.”
Ms Shrivastava added that IIT Roorkee routinely oversees vendor activities to ensure adherence to all regulations, including food safety standards, and conducts regular inspections to uphold the highest quality of services for its students.
