Rampant adulteration in food items continue to pose a real threat to the life of people in the satellite city. Adulteration in Milk, food items and eatables is seen in every nook and corner of the country. There is no one to catch hold of the miscreants. The crisis had taken a serious turn in the absence of adequate consumer awareness in public domain. In general and residents in particular are benefited by the presence of MAFCO wholesale market in the vicinity. But adulteration is the major cause of worry when people go for cheap products in the consumer market. People generally go for seasonal fruits and they enjoy the taste at cheaper rate.
We get plenty of fruits in the market and people crave for mangoes and grapes very much. Generally they prefer box of fruits and store in their fridge to last longer. But it is sad to note that these fruits are chemically ripened to get early market sale and such fruits are not really good for health. So, it is necessary to wash the fruits very well before use. In a first in the history of Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Maharashtra, a huge quantity of artificially ripened bananas was destroyed by the Inspecting Officials. These bananas were being ripened using a lethal chemical normally used in the wedding industry.
In the same way, Alphonso Mango’s export was banned due to artificial ripening of the prestigious fruit before export. Normally it takes any fruit at least 15 to 20 days to ripen. But some shops were ripening the fruit artificially. The concerned administration can nab offenders by conducting a surprise check. The fruits used to lie along with a chemical powder called calcium carbide. Generally, the bananas were ripened in the room within 12-14 hours due to the presence and effect of the compound in the room. Needless to say, the bananas no longer remained organic after the chemical reaction.
It has been noticed that raw bananas are brought and kept in a red chemical mix in a drum so that they ripen faster. During Festival time people will be using more fruits to appease God and by consuming such artificially ripened fruits people suffer from various diseases. It is time to take care of your health by not buying such artificially ripened fruits from the market. Steps should be taken to curb adulteration in the open market and the health inspectors should keep a close watch on such activities.
Even the milk we are using on daily basis is adulterated and contains more toxic substances. We need to have a fool proof system and even 0.01% is found to be adulterated then those milk farm owners should be penalized with heavy fine for offences committed by them. Thus adulteration in the consumer market cause worry and the next generation of children will find it very difficult to survive.
C.K. Subramaniam
