Fowl play: Chicken dosas served at Panjab University Coffee House, in violation of tender
Officials said they will check how chicken, if it is served, is being stored and from where it is procured; they added that while restaurants in the Sector 14 market can stock chicken items, it is not allowed in university-owned shops
Panjab University (PU) officials are scrambling to address a culinary conundrum after it was found that non-vegetarian dishes have been sneaking their way into the menu of the iconic Coffee House at the Students’ Centre.
This, as per authorities, is in violation of the contract, as the tender floated by estate office on December 12, 2019, did not include any non-vegetarian items, except for a few egg dishes.
While the tender strictly prohibits serving of any dish not approved by the varsity, visitors claim that chicken and mutton dosas can be ordered here, although these items are not prominently displayed on the menu.
When contacted, PU vice-chancellor professor Renu Vig said, “We will check for ourselves on Tuesday and decide whether action should be taken.”
The Coffee House menu is approved by the estate office which comes under the PU registrar. Professor YP Verma, the registrar, confirmed that the tender did not mention chicken items and no changes were made to it. He added that chicken items have not been part of the menu for the past few years.
Officials said they will check how chicken, if it is served, is being stored and from where it is procured. They added that while restaurants in the Sector 14 market can stock chicken items, it is not allowed in university-owned shops.
The Coffee House tender also prohibits the sale of aerated drinks, however, these are also readily served here.
Colonel RK Bawa (retd), the proprietor of the Defence Catering, the firm which runs the Coffee House, said the non-veg items were part of the original tender, under serial number 102. He added that they had been selling the dish since last August and no complaints have been received so far.
In April this year, after a student found egg in the noodles ordered from the mess at Boys Hostel Number 2, PU had issued directions to all hostel messes to have separate zones and utensils for cooking eggs.
Rajat Puri, a Special Invitee member of ABVP at Panjab University, said, “Tenders tend to get overlooked. I wasn’t aware of this violation. However, chicken and meat are not sold at any shop at the Student Centre or in the hostel mess. There are some religious festivals where we even call for separate counters for cooking eggs to respect everyone’s religious sentiments. No one is against meat, everyone has different food habits, but everyone’s sentiments must be respected.”