Patients’ relatives seeking affordable meals at Mumbai’s JJ Hospital are facing fresh inconvenience after its Central Canteen, whose food licence was suspended by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on October 9, remained shut one week later, with a notice declaring it “closed for renovation”.

A visit by mid-day on Friday found the canteen closed, with no reopening date mentioned on the notice. The shutdown has disrupted the routine of doctors, medical students, and medical representatives, who regularly relied on the facility, while patients’ relatives accompanying their loved ones through treatment could face the additional burden of finding food outside the hospital.