MALAPPURAM: The Indian Railway has launched an investigation on the illegal drinking water bottling plant at Vazhakkad in the district found reusing bottles of Rail Neer, a product of Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC).
A team of its vigilance officials from Palakkad visited the plant on Thursday and collected samples. The bottling and food manufacturing unit was unearthed on Wednesday during a special food safety inspection conducted by Vazhakkad grama panchayat and health authorities.
Both the Panchayath and the district food safety officer have fined the unit Rs 10,000 each for operating without license and approval.
“The plant was reusing the bottles of Rail Neer to market it in another name. There were no facilities to ensure the safety of the packaged water. It was running without a proper license,” said Jaisal Elamaram, vice-president of the Vazhakkad panchayath.
The raid was part of its recently launched plastic-free project. The persons who were running the unit are still absconding. There were only a few women workers at the unit during the raid.
Besides packaged drinking water, the inspectors also found synthetic fruit juices and soft drinks being prepared in unhygienic conditions. Thousands of used Rail Neer bottles were seized from the unit. The district food safety department has also collected samples of pickles and other items from the unit for tests.
