Govt warns vendors against sale of contaminated water cans

Chennai: With summer set to intensify, the Tamil Nadu food safety dept stepped up monitoring of packaged drinking water cans. It has started issuing guidelines to suppliers against selling contaminated 20-litre cans and ordered strict inspections to ensure that quality and safety standards are followed.The move came amid rising demand for packaged water during peak summer months, when households and commercial establishments increasingly depend on 20-litre cans for daily consumption. Authorities cautioned that shop owners selling water in dirty or algae-infested cans will face a fine of 5,000.Under the guidelines, vendors must ensure that every can is clean and properly labelled with the manufacturer's name, date of packing, expiry date, and licence number issued by the food safety and standards authority of India (FSSAI). "Companies were instructed not to store drinking water cans in direct sunlight, as exposure to heat can affect quality. A water can should be recycled only up to 30 times, after which it must be discarded to prevent contamination risks," said R Lalvena, commissioner of the food safety department.The dept also prescribed mineral standards for packaged drinking water, stating that calcium levels should range between 10mg and 75mg per litre, while magnesium content must remain between 5mg and 30mg per litre.Industry representatives, however, said most authorized suppliers regularly test water quality and follow safety norms. "We tested water quality, and even govt depts conducted checks. Standards were generally maintained well. The issue arises with unauthorized vendors who collect water from tanker lorries without quality checks and paste labels of different companies. This often goes unchecked, and action should be taken against them," said a supplier.Residents said despite multiple complaints to suppliers about algae-infested cans, little action was taken. "During summer, we often find the cans are dirty. Even when we complain, they assure us that they will provide a new can next time, but fail to do so. Even the govt departments concerned failed to inspect these local shops, which is why they continue the practice," said K Malathy, a resident of K K Nagar.