The Times of India  31.08.2010

MANGALORE: In a view to check food adulteration and prevent artificial ripening of fruits using chemicals, the Mangalore City Corporation has urged the government to sanction a food-testing laboratory to the civic body. A proposal to this effect has been sent to the government last week, MCC commissioner K N Vijayaprakash said, at monthly meeting of civic body here on Monday. Mayor Rajani Dugganna chaired the meeting.

Responding to the observations made by former mayor Shankar Bhat on the issue and dangers posed by such practice, he said MCC has to lean on Central Food Technological Research Institute, Mysore, or Food and Water Analysis Laboratory, Bangalore, for reports on food items suspected to be adulterated. These labs take long time to submit reports and is therefore prudent for MCC to have its own testing facility, he noted.

Dangers of artificial ripening of fruits and vegetables not only take place at the source, but also at wholesale and retail supply points in the city. Stating that he was fully aware of these developments, Vijayaprakash said the civic body has issued notices to 41 wholesale merchants and retailers and initiated action against them. Vegetables and fruits, especially mango, banana, and sweetlime, are ripened using acetylene gas and carbide.

Vijayaprakash said the corporation has two food inspectors, but lacked the expertise to detect food adulteration on a large scale. The food testing laboratory once set up can also be used to check quality of various kinds of food items consumed by people at hotels, bars, restaurants, eateries as well as quality of water supplied to the people. This laboratory will be a useful tool to check food and water-borne epidemics, he noted.

When opposition members objected to Shankar Bhat's somewhat lengthy preamble to the topic, the mayor pacified them observing that it is a matter of public importance and should not be taken lightly. The commissioner said adulteration of food, especially artificially-ripening of fruits is punishable under section 44 Aa of Karnataka Municipal Corporations Act as well as the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954.

Opposition member Naveen D'Souza advocated the need for the corporation to have its own food and nutrition inspector, who can check instances of food adulteration and urged the mayor to send a proposal to the state government on the issue. In fact, it was Naveen, who in 2007 had first mooted the idea for the MCC to have its own food-testing laboratory, a fact that the commissioner placed on record while replying to the query.

The Times of India  31.08.2010

NEW DELHI: The Delhi Government residential colony in Timarpur, one of the largest cluster of quarters for state government employees, is under dengue threat. The water tank in this colony has been found to have heavy mosquito breeding as it has remained without a cover for a long time now.

Residents say that the cover of the concrete structure with a capacity of more than five lakh gallons broke more than a year ago. Since then it has not been repaired. The colony is a stone's throw from the residence of the Mayor."There is heavy mosquito breeding in these tanks. The water in this huge tank has been lying without cover for months but the civic agencies responsible for maintenance have chosen to ignore this," said Sushil Sharma, one of the residents.

He said that several houses in the neighbourhood have reported dengue cases in the past few days. The water from the tank, he added, is supplied to more than 800 houses and is used for both drinking and general purposes. Sanjeev Bhati, another resident, said his sons — one eight-year-old and another 10-year-old — were suffering from dengue.

"From rainwater to bird droppings and even faecal matter of animals collects in the tank as there is no cover. We have to use the same water as there are no other options. It is causing high incidence of gastrointestinal problems too," said a resident.

Dr Tara Negi, a medical officer in the colony's dispensary, said that they receive one to two cases of suspected dengue everyday. "We have exhausted the dengue kits so we refer patients to Aruna Asaf Ali hospital now," said Negi. She added that cases of diarrhoea and other gastrointestinal problems are also prevalent. She, however, refused to comment whether this is due to the water tank problem. The colony falls under Civil Lines Zone, which is among the worst-affected areas in the present dengue outbreak. Till date, total 103 confirmed cases of dengue have been reported from this zone.

When contacted, PWD officials responsible for maintenance work said that there are plans to construct a new water tank in the colony. "There is a shop in front of the compound. We have written to the PWD Secretary several times to allow us to demolish it. Till then, bulk of the water is being supplied from another tank," said assistant engineer V K Gupta. MCD Health officer N K Yadav said that he will look into the matter and take necessary action.