STAFF REPORTER
GUWAHATI: The packaged drinking water available in the market may not be safe for consumption. Besides branded packaged drinking water bottles, we find many packaged drinking water bottles manufactured by local units in the market. However, all these local packaged drinking water bottles may not be safe for consumption.
In the State, there has been a mushrooming growth of local packaged drinking water units. Most of them are operating without proper certificates. So there is a big question mark over the quality of the water that is being packaged and sold to gullible consumers. To start a packaged drinking water unit, one needs at least 10 mandatory certificates. Most of the local packaged drinking water units operating in the State do not have all the mandatory licences. They are clearly working against the food safety laws of the country and thereby, putting public health at risk.
Packaged drinking water units in the district of Hojai had come under the scanner after the Hojai Deputy Commissioner closed down 17 packaged drinking water units because they had not obtained the mandatory certificates. The Hojai DC cracked the whip on these drinking water units following public complaints about the quality of the water and the water bottles. This is the scenario in just one district. There are many such units in all the districts of the State, including Kamrup (metro). But no one is monitoring the sale of bottled water. Consumers are drinking whatever bottled water is available in the market, without even knowing whether the water is safe and hygienic.
To start a packaged drinking water unit, the following certificates are mandatory – trade license from the local municipal bodies, certificate from the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), certificate from the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), certificate from the Central Ground Water Board (CGWB), certificate from the Pollution Control Board (PCB) and certificate from the Department of Legal Metrology. In addition, one will require test reports of the water, whether the water is microbiologically safe for consumption or not, what is the percentage of nitrate, sulphur and fluoride in the water etc. Moreover, the processed water must be filled in bottles that are tamper-proof, tight and impervious, as per the BIS standards.
According to official sources, unscrupulous businessmen somehow manage to obtain 1-2 certificates and start the packaged drinking water units. The water source is not tested and even the water is not processed and purified scientifically. It is compulsory for manufacturers who intend to set up packaged water processing units to obtain the Indian Standards Institution (ISI) mark from BIS. But how many packaged drinking water bottles have this mark? And do we as consumers bother to check the ISI mark before drinking bottled water?
Therefore, the government should put in place a mechanism to monitor the local packaged drinking water units. Action must be taken against those government officials who help units to operate without the necessary certificates. There must be a thorough investigation into this whole packaged drinking water business as it concerns public health.
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