Andhra Pradesh - Vijayawada   

Think twice before drinking packaged water

VIJAYAWADA: Think twice the next time you pick up a branded packaged drinking water bottle at the railway station or bus station. There is every chance of you picking up an adulterated or unsafe drinking water bottle, which is likely to contain bacteria. Some of the cooking oils too are found to be unsafe for consumption.

This was established by the examination of the samples collected by the officials of the Vijayawada Municipal Corporation (VMC) a month ago. The Corporation officials picked up samples from retail outlets and sent them for microbiological tests. The tests revealed that “yeast and molds’ colonies” were present in the packaged water, though no treated and packaged water should contain any of these bacteria, officials say.

The food inspectors took samples of four popular brands of water bottles and found that the water packaged by two of them was “unsafe” for drinking.

Similarly, the food inspectors collected samples of palm oil and loose groundnut oil.

The tests divulged that the acid content in palm oil was 0.94 count, against the permissible limit of 0.5 count. The loose groundnut oil was found to have been adulterated with cottonseed oil, which is said to be a toxic oil as it contains gossypol. It is often used as a pesticide. So, there is every chance of users of this loose oil consuming the toxic substance. VMC officials say they will send a report to the State food health authorities, who would have to permit the Corporation to prosecute the erring companies or shops. If the charges are established in a court of law, the companies would have to pay fine and undergo six months of imprisonment. The Corporation officials say these results prove beyond doubt that adulteration is not just confined to some local brands or products.

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Stories in this Section

Run to promote harmony
Turning point in the lives of many a street children
Think twice before drinking packaged water
Chaos at Krishna Congress meeting
Learn from mistakes, DS tells partymen
VMC general body meet today
‘Pulsar’ gang strikes again
Victims of trafficking oppose legalisation

Copyright © 2009, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu