165 of 1,200 water cans checked unfit for drinking.

Chennai: Give it a second thought before you consume can water, as it could be full of diseases. In the raid conducted by Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) in Koyambedu on Saturday, a total of 165 cans out of 1,200 turned out to be contaminated and defective.

"A team of five checked around 15 vehicles from Kancheepuram and Tiruvallur districts and found out that the cans were unlabelled and soiled. We are frequenting the checks in commercial areas, as more than 60 percent of Chennaiites rely on can water " said Dr R. Kathiravan, designated officer, Tamil Nadu Food Safety and Drug told Deccan Chronicle.

While 60 cans had no proper labels, 31 cans were soiled and the rest were branded with names of unauthorised companies, added the official.

According to dietician, Dharini Krishnan, many health problems are associated with consuming the contaminated water.

"One might be affected with lung problems; nausea, vomiting and can also have fatal consequences. It is better to drink boiled water or store it in a copper vessel, as it removes all the bacteria within eight hours," said the dietician.

There is a total of four teams who would conduct the raids for two more weeks in all the arterial roads of Chennai.

In a similar raid conducted last week, the FSSAI team has found out the usage of an expired essence and excessive amount of synthetic colour in the mixed fruit juices in Aminjikarai.