Suruchi fined over mice and cockroaches

AN award-winning Indian restaurant has been fined £1800 after it was found to be infested with mice and cockroaches.

The owners of Suruchi admitted contravening hygiene laws and having no pest control in place at Edinburgh Sheriff Court yesterday.

City council health and safety officers inspected the premises last October after an anonymous complaint.

A "serious breach" of hygiene laws was uncovered when they looked over the kitchens of the Nicolson Street restaurant.

They found that mice and cockroaches had been allowed to infest the area where food was prepared. Hygiene experts said that, as cockroaches were nocturnal creatures, their daytime visit turned up "just the tip of the iceberg".

The parent company, Indi Food Business, admitted no pest control measures were in place.

It claimed it had difficulty training staff because the city council couldn't issue guidelines in the Hindi language.

Proprietor Herman Rodrigues had originally been charged with the offence but his not guilty plea was accepted by the Crown.

But he was in court to see the company fined 1800 for the breach.