Only 18 units certified for supply of packaged drinking water

By Our Staff Reporter

BANGALORE, AUG. 14. Till date, only 18 units -- 12 Bangalore- based -- that manufacture packaged drinking water have been certified by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) in the State.

But the last date for obtaining this certification ended on March 29, 2001. Yet, consumers remain unaware of the BIS certification, the processes involved or even the need for such standardisation. In fact, manufacturers too appear unconcerned if their products do not meet the required quality.

On Tuesday, the BIS premises in Peenya Industrial Area (PIA) saw an interaction between BIS officials, the licensed manufacturers, Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BMP) health officers and the State Commissioner for Health and Family Welfare, Mr. Sanjay Kaul.

One of the BIS directors, Mr. P.Sengupta, informed the gathering that the March 29 deadline had not been extended. But an extra six months till September 29 this year, had been granted to those manufacturers who applied for BIS certification before March 29.

These manufacturers should have obtained certification by June 29, 2001 and can sell their products ``...in the market, without BIS certification on their labels, only till September 29.'' According to information from the BIS, 14 more units in the State have registered for the licence.

This licensing is a long-drawn affair. If a manufacturer wants to his/her unit certified, the registration fee is Rs.3,000, every subsequent plant visit (by BIS officials) costs Rs.2,000 and testing charges per water sample will come to Rs.2,000. Ultimately, the manufacturer pays about Rs.15,000 for the certification which, is moreover, only valid for a year.

But the certification is compulsory through a notification issued under the Prevention of Food Adulteration (PFA) Amendment Rules, 2000.

Till now, the certified packaged water in Karnataka has been only ``packaged drinking water'' with the Indian Standardised Specification of IS 14543:1998. According to BIS officials, none of the products have been ``packaged natural mineral water'' with the standard IS 13428:1998.

At the same time, BIS officials were frank enough to admit they had ``no reliable information'' on the number of unlicenced manufacturers operating in Bangalore or elsewhere. Neither could they comment on the ``size'' or commercial value of the drinking water market in the City/State.

When questioned on the matter, even the BMP Chief Health Officer, Dr. R.K.Kumaraswamy, said he was unaware as to how many drinking water brands were being manufactured in the City. But, under PFA rules, the BMP is supposed to ensure that the certification is implemented for manufacturing units based in Bangalore.

Dr. Kumaraswamy, however, added that BMP officials had tested 82 water samples and found 23 adulterated.

Of the 18 certified, 15 are from the small scale-sector. The BIS- certified brands as on August 10, 2000 are Aqua Cento (CM/L 625 8069), Kinley (CM/L 626 2060), Neycer (CM/L 626 2666), Bindu (CM/L 627 5170), Sujal 2000 (CM/L 627 7881), Marina (CM/L 627 7982), Bailey (CM/L 627 8984), Hello (CM/L 627 9582), Bisleri (CM/L 628 0365), Kingfisher (CM/L 628 2672), Fizzo & Bisleri (CM/L 628 1872) same manufacturer, Any Time & Khodays (CM/L 628 4070) same manufacturer, Sparkle (CM/L 628 4676), Aquafina (CM/L 627 0059), Trupthi & Blissful (CM\L 628 1569) same manufacturer, Sizzlers (CM/L 628 3876), Arrow (CM/L 628 5981) and Bright (CM/L 628 4474).

Log onto `http://wwwdel.vsnl.net.in/bis.org' or write in at email: bisbnbo@bgl.vsnl.net.in for further details.

The bottles must be titled ``packaged drinking water'' not ``mineral water'' or ``bisleri''

Packing must be colourless, and containers must be transparent. Bluish-tinged big cans can be used till July 31, 2003.

HDPE (high density poly ethylene) white or opaque drums that supply water should not be bought.

Manufacturers cannot claim medicinal properties for products.

Place names (for the bottle) can be used only if they are the water sources.

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