Previously known as the Food Joints Monitoring Committee, the Inspection and Monitoring Committee (IMC) is a nine-member committee with three student representatives. It also consists of the Associate Dean of the SWD (who selects the student representatives), the Chief Warden, the Chief Security Officer, the Chief Medical Officer, a representative of the EMU, and a legal advisor. The committee was formed this year after the success of the Food Joint Monitoring Committee, which led to it becoming a regulated institute body. To gain insight into the workings of the IMC, the English Press Club sat down with Sagar Venkata, one of its student members, for an interview. “By having experts in the committee, we are able to take much more proactive action with greater confidence,” Sagar explained. 

Apart from being responsible for inspecting all food joints on campus—besides the Institute Canteen and C’Not—the IMC is also responsible for other campus outlets such as Jawed Habib and the Laundromat. This has led to the committee having far-ranging responsibilities, most of which are still in the process of formalization, as the committee is new, and documentation regarding it is still being formulated. Any member of the committee is free to conduct inspections of these outlets at any time, the likelihood of which is influenced by the complaints gathered from students or workers. If any health concerns arise during such an inspection, the committee can speak to the manager of the outlet about their concerns. Should the concern be critical or should the manager be unwilling to make a change, the Chief Warden can go so far as to close the food joint based on his own formal inspection of the problem. In case of a serious health issue, the committee is capable of suspending a food joint until the concerns are alleviated.

Inspection of food joints on campus is critical because bidders for these outlets often attempt to increase profits by selling subpar products. Workers have been known to disregard basic hygiene sometimes to ensure food is ready on time, and vendors often accidentally end up selling expired goods. The IMC monitors these things, carefully recording discrepancies and taking appropriate actions  Though no major raids have occurred thus far, regular inspections have been taking place. All the food joints are aware of the IMC’s existence and have been informed of the possibility of random inspection. This ensures that they consistently maintain the quality of their goods. ‘This committee is not the only body in charge of the quality of service, all the students are responsible for that.’ Prof. Srikanta Routroy, the convener of the committee, said, ‘It is merely a platform for students to bring their complaints to be acted upon.’