Surat: As many as 16 mineral packaged drinking water plants in four different municipal zones in the city were sealed on Tuesday by the health department teams of the Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) after these were found operating without the mandatory Bureau of Indian Standard (BIS) and ISI certification.
The food and health department officials raided plants in Katargam, Rander,Udhana and Limbayat.
Dr Ashish Naik, deputy municipal commissioner (health and hospital) told TOI, “We had received information on the illegal operation of several mineral water plants in four different municipal zones who were delivering compromised quality water on daily basis sans adherence to BIS and ISI criteria.”
Dr Naik further said that BIS certification is must for all those manufacturers selling mineral water. “We will punish those who don’t follow the prescribed norms and standards for water quality,” he added.
A food and health officer said, “These plants had many irregularities. The owners were not taking care to maintain hygienic condition inside the plant and were drawing water from the SMC’s water network. The water jars too were not washed properly at the time of refilling. We will be taking action under the BPMC Act for violating the prescribed safety norms against the owners.”
