Railways fines vendor Rs 50 lakh, terminates contract after worms found in Vande Bharat Meal

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New Delhi: The Railways has terminated the contract of a vendor after a passenger found worms in a packaged curd served to him on the Patna-Tatanagar Vande Bharat Express and imposed a fine of Rs 50 lakh on the company.

The Railway Ministry has also imposed a fine of Rs 10 lakh on its own company, the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC), for not handling the matter properly.

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On March 15, a group of seven passengers on board the Vande Bharat train were served packaged curd of a known brand along with dinner. Upon opening one of the packets, they found live worms and insects inside. The passenger, Ritesh Singh, immediately flagged the issue on his X handle, tagging the IRCTC, the Railway Minister and others.

In its incident-cum-action taken report, IRCTC found that the curd packet was picked up from Patna, with a manufacturing date of March 9, 2026 and an expiry date of April 7, 2026.

The report stated that the officials apologised to the passengers and served them dry fruit mixtures and some sweet treats.

“We tried to explain the situation to them in every possible manner and requested them to verify the matter at the spot. However, they refused to delete the tweet and expressed their intention that the video should go viral and trend,” the report said.

According to the report, the vendor, Krishna Enterprises, was fined Rs 25,000 and warned for negligence in food handling. The firm was also instructed to maintain a proper cold chain, be more vigilant and adhere to food safety protocols.

Dissatisfied with the IRCTC’s action, the Railway Ministry on Wednesday directed it to terminate the contract of Krishna Enterprises and enhance the fine from Rs 25,000 to Rs 50 lakh.

The ministry has also imposed a fine of Rs 10 lakh on IRCTC.

“Considering the gravity of the lapses, the competent authority has decided to impose a fine of Rs 10 lakh on IRCTC for such deficiency in services. Further, IRCTC is advised to ensure strict monitoring of onboard services so as to prevent any such incident in future,” the Ministry said in its order.

“All concerned IRCTC supervisors must be directed to ensure that food quality, food safety and hygiene are their prime concerns,” it added.

The ministry also posted the matter on its X handle, stating, “The complaint regarding food quality raised by a passenger in train number 21896 (Patna-Tatanagar Vande Bharat Express) on 15 March, 2026 has been taken seriously.” “Action taken – IRCTC has been penalised Rs 10 lakh, the service provider has been penalised with Rs 50 lakh, and has been ordered to terminate the contract. Passenger safety and quality remain our top priority,” the post read.