Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala health minister Veena George on Thursday made it clear that stringent actions will be taken against parties allegedly involved in the illicit issuance of health cards. 

The minister was reacting to the Mathrubhumi News’ report that a section of doctors is involved in issuing health cards for food centre staffers in exchange for money without proper scrutiny of their health conditions.

The minister assured that the matter will be probed and those who fail to comply with stipulated norms will invite stringent action. According to the minister, those involved in malpractices disregard medical ethics and disrespect the citizenry. 

The Kerala government made health cards mandatory for all employees of establishments related to the preparation, distribution and sale of food in the state. The government resorted to drastic measures to ensure hygiene in hotels after several cases of suspected food poisoning cases were reported in the state.