Overused water cans, unhygienic storage remain concerns

CHENNAI: Sales of bottled drinking water may be going up, but the water may not always be safe to drink. Often, the water refill cans are dirty, damaged or overused. The stickers on the cans may be of one brand, but the water inside could be of another, or worse, it could be just tap water. Or the water could get contaminated by unsafe storage practices.
The can may be refilled only 35 times, but often, in practice, they are overused. "Chemical reactions that occur in old cans can spoil the water and make it non-potable," a retired director of the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) said. The bottled drinking water industry in Chennai supplies four lakh litres of water, consisting of around 220 to 250 suppliers and 4,000 dealers.
Experts say that the water will get contaminated if the plastic bottle is kept under direct sunlight for more than 38 hours. "Most shopkeepers keep the water cans in front of their shops, under direct sunlight, and often near garbage bins," a water manufacturer said. "If the water is stored thus, it could get contaminated due to microbiological growth. Packaged drinking water should be used within a few days after it is released from the manufacturing unit," K Anbarasu, deputy director-general, BIS, Southern Region, said.
On an average, a shopkeeper buys and sells three or more brands of packaged drinking water. When the companies go back to the shopkeeper for empty cans to refill, cans of other brands are exchanged. "If the company refuses, the shopkeeper threatens to delay payment," said a water supplier.
"Some shopkeepers remove the sticker on the can and sell them, so we can never be sure if the correct brand is returned to the supplier," said V Murali, founder and patron of Tamil Nadu Packaged Drinking Water Manufacturers Association. As per BIS norms, refilling cans of other brands in a BIS certified plant is an offence.