Aleem Khan hints at new advisory board for Punjab restaurants

LAHORE: Punjab Senior Food Minister Abdul Aleem Khan assured a delegation of Lahore Restaurants Association here Monday that their request for reopening of restaurants would be considered sympathetically by the authorities concerned.

The delegation was led by Association Chairman Mahmood Akbar, while President Kamran Sheikh, Secretary Ahmed Shafiq and Finance Secretary Nisar Chaudhry were also present in the meeting.

The senior minister said that it was a basic right of citizens to have quality food and poor cleanliness conditions at restaurants as well as their kitchens would not be tolerated.

Abdul Aleem Khan said, "There is a need to follow social distancing and other precautionary measures under the prevailing conditions of Covid-19 to stay protected. He hinted at forming a new advisory board for restaurants. He said that a body comprising representatives of Punjab Food Authority and restaurants would be formed to resolve the issues through mutual understanding.

He said, "We have to ensure quality food and no one could be allowed to play with the health of the people just for earning profits. "The representatives of the Lahore Restaurants Association said that their closed businesses were on the brink of collapse, while thousands of people associated with this industry had been rendered jobless.

They requested that like other businesses, restaurants should also be allowed to resume their business, for which all standard operating procedures (SOPs) and the government conditions would be complied with.