Kolkata Corporation officials collect packaged water samples for quality tests

NewsBharati    17-Feb-2018
Total Views |

Kolkata, February 17: A sudden diarrhea outbreak in Southern suburbs of Kolkata has scared citizens. Out of fear of water contamination, many citizens are buying packaged drinking waters but a recent sample test found bacteria in packaged water too. Kolkata Corporation officials on Friday collected water samples from local companies that produce packaged drinking water in affected areas.

A team from Kolkata Corporation comprising six members packaged water production units which were in unhygienic condition. "The conditions in the plants are unhygienic. We have collected samples from the units for tests. The action would be taken if the water does not meet the quality standards," a corporation official said as quoted by local media. The bottles did not even have the mandatory stamp of the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI).

In last year, state’s Enforcement Brunch(EB) raided many water production units. There they found many units used to pack tap water and then sell it as mineral water. In many suburbs near Kolkata, you can get 20 liters water at 30 Rs which is very cheap to compared market rates.

Mayor Sovan Chatterjee on Thursday announced “packaged water" might be the reason for the outbreak of diarrhea denying any contamination in municipality supply water. Local media reports say nearly 2,000 patients admitted to the two infectious diseases hospitals in the city. While after several tests, contamination of water is behind the diarrhea outbreak, has been asserted clearly, the civic body has still not come out with any fundamental measures to solve it.

Kolkata KMC Packaged Water Water Contamination Diarrhea Outbreak