Kerala Bottled Water Manufacturers Association to cost Rs 12 from april 2

Kochi: Kerala Bottled Water Manufacturers Association (KBWA), claiming to be the only organisation for bottled water manufacturers in the state, has decided to reduce the retail price to Rs 12 per bottle from Rs 20 effective from April 2. KBWA president ME Mohammad told reporters the bottled water sold for Rs 10 per litre initially has been increased gradually to Rs 12, Rs 15, Rs 17 and Rs 20 per bottle due to pressure from multi-nationals and liquor companies.

Mohammad and other office bearers of the KBWA said the price reduction was effected following the requests from the Government post-implementation of GST. The KBWA leaders also allayed fears of the quality of the water supplied by local manufacturers.

“It is a myth that only a higher price ensures quality. Packaged drinking water can be manufactured and retailed only adhering to Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) IS14543”, they said. “The decision to cut price was effected without any compromise in quality”, they added.

KBWA officials also said that since multi-national bottlers are unlikely to bring down their MRP, there could be orchestrated scandals against the companies that sell at the lower price. In spite of that, KBWA requested the public to buy only bottled water priced at the reduced Rs12.