The eighth anniversary of Zero Miles Grill and Cafe passed without any celebration at its headquarters here, as founder Jibran Khan used the occasion to advocate for a unified licensing framework for food business operators in the Valley during a review meeting convened by the FSSAI chief.
There was no cake-cutting or formal address to mark the milestone. Instead, Jibran Khan walked into Conference Room-3 at the Sher-i-Kashmir International Convention Centre (SKICC) carrying a folder containing a presentation that focused largely on regulatory reforms rather than on his own business achievements.
The meeting was called by the Chief Executive Officer of the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), Rajit Punhani, who is on a four-day visit to the Valley to assess the challenges faced by Food Business Operators (FBOs). Participants described the hours-long interaction as a rare instance of convergence between the regulator and the regulated. Jibran Khan, who runs the Zero Miles Grill and Cafe chain, highlighted what he termed as compliance hurdles that discourage expansion in the region.
“The system demands separate licences for every branch, duplicate filings, and independent audits for each unit. This is not red tape but a barrier to expansion and a disincentive for entrepreneurs looking to scale up in Kashmir,” he said.
Khan advocated for a unified single-window licensing system with a digital dashboard—one registration and one compliance framework governing all outlets under a single brand.
“The regulator must transition from being a strict enforcer to a facilitator, especially for startups and MSMEs. Kashmir’s terrain is uniquely difficult, with supply chains collapsing during harsh winters and infrastructure deficits making compliance disproportionately harder than in the plains. These are ground realities, not excuses,” he added.
The restaurateur also criticised the existing grievance redressal mechanism, describing it as a labyrinth that leaves small players helpless. “If a small food business owner faces a field-level issue, most do not even know which door to knock on. We need a mechanism where small players can flag issues without being lost in bureaucratic labyrinths,” he said.
Jibran said the Jammu and Kashmir Food Commissioner gave a positive response and addressed his question, in which he had urged for a roadmap for restaurants, cafes, and highway businesses. “Is there any roadmap for the future? Do you have any proposal for that?” The J&K Food Commissioner provided a detailed roadmap, explaining how they plan to establish a database within the next six months and that they are definitely moving forward in that direction.
