AGRA: You might imagine that the water you drink is safe, since it is bottled and neatly packaged. There are, however, numerous "bottling units" that merely fill in pipeline water and sell them as "mineral water" to unsuspecting customers across the country, cashing in on ignorance regarding safe drinking water and the genuine brands that market them. Aware of this growing and dangerous racket, instructions have gone out from the Prime Minister’s Office to state governments to check the sale of “spurious” bottled water.

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Chief food safety officer of Agra Sarvesh Mishra told TOI on Wednesday that his department would start collecting samples of water from bottling units starting Friday and send them to government laboratories for testing.

“Our concern is to ensure that water does not contain harmful elements. However, it is the duty of the ground water authority to check whether such plants have obtained proper licenses or not.”

The letter from the PMO , a copy of which is with TOI, that was received by the food safety and drug administration (FSDA) here only recently, says: ''This has come to our knowledge that drinking water assembling in bottles has become good/handsome business and water is not distilled water but pipeline water in bottles. (This is) to earn money by unfair means.” The letter has also been marked to the National Human Rights Commission.

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Sources said that the fake "bottled water" business has been thriving in Uttar Pradesh and in many other states of India, with passengers, especially those taking trains and buses, falling prey to it.

“The PMO’s concern is not misplaced. Suppliers pass off ground water as RO (reverse-osmosis) purified water. Instead of relying on this kind of water, people should go for water purifiers,” Mishra said.

Additional district magistrate (city) Rajesh Kumar Srivastava said his office had still to receive the order. “Once we receive it, Agra Nagar Nigam and Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board will be asked to look into the matter,” he said.