FDA finds samples of bottled water in Pune division unsafe

PUNE: Samples of packaged drinking water in Pune division were found substandard and unsafe. 

Seven of the 29 samples officials from Food and Drug Administration (FDA) drew from five districts including Pune between August 2011 and December 2014were found unsafe while four samples failed the quality parameters. Of the seven unsafe samples, three each were from Pune and Solapur. 

Officials have filed court cases against the erring units for violation of Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 norms. A temporary prohibitory order until further notice has been issued and the plants where samples were found unsafe have been shut down. 

"Pune and Solapur have reported the highest number of unsafe samples found harmful for human consumption. They contained fungal growth and had elevated microbial counts. We have intensified our surveillance ," said Shashikant Kekare, joint commissioner (food), FDA, Pune division. 

The food safety officials drew 19 samples from Pune district. "Of these, three were found unsafe and four failed the quality parameters. The samples were drawn from packaged drinking plants in Haveli, Indapur and Maval taluka," said assistant commissioner (food), Pune, Dilip Sangat. 

Of the four samples drawn from packaged drinking water plants in Solapur, three were unsafe. "We have already shut down these plants. Besides, surveillance has been intensified in the surrounding areas of Solapur," Kekare said. 

Sub-standard packaged drinking water and duplicate varieties of branded packaged drinking water are available in the market, said shop owners. "People are being fooled. FDA should take action against errant bottling plants and conduct random checks," a grocery shop owner in Dhayari said. 

Though state governments issue permission to set up water-bottling plants, the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) grants product licences. The agency has the mandate to ensure quality of both packaged drinking water and packaged mineral water. 

Sources said bottling unit owners invest up to Rs 2 lakh while a standard mineral water processing plant needs around Rs 20 lakh and many supply water without ISO certification. "The demand for packaged water is so high that it hardly matters whether the contents are certified or not. People don't ask about the certification," said food joint owner Amrut Salvi. 

Consumption of packaged drinking water shoots up during summer. According to an estimate, the city consumes between 30,000 to 40,000 bottles of 20-litre capacity of water per day. "Most illegal plants fill the bottles with tap or ground water and sell it as processed drinking water," said another grocery shop owner in Kothrud. 

During 2010-11, 6,648 samples of packaged drinking water were taken from across India and 805 of them failed. Government agencies had sent 543 warning letters to manufacturers for flouting the norms. The data shows that at least 30 licences were cancelled. In Delhi and Noida, 23 of the 190 samples failed and two licences were cancelled. In Maharashtra and Goa, 104 of 729 samples failed the tests.