Bhopal:Flavoured-water pouch plant running sans BIS licence sealed

Bhopal(Madhya Pradesh): The Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) sealed an illegal plant engaged in manufacturing flavored water pouches sans BIS license (Bureau of Indian Standards) here on Friday. The plant Honest People Beverages was operational at Rapadia village, adjoining the state capital.

A team of the Food Safety Administration raided the plant on Friday and flavoured water pouches were being packed without a BIS certificate. Misleading the authorities, the owner of the plant had taken a license from the food department under a different category which did not require a BIS certificate.  

The team collected two samples from the plant and sealed the factory for violating section 31. After sealing the factory, its license is also being canceled, said FAD official.

Bhopal's Chief Food Safety Officer Sanjay Shrivastava  said, “ Non carbonated water-based beverages were found being manufactured without proper license and permission. A BIS license is needed for it. This action has been initiated against Honest People Beverages under Section 420 of IPC.”

The FDA team led by inspector Devendra Dubey,  said the factories and plants manufacturing food items have to get licenses in different categories. Alcoholic beverages, food beverages, carbonated beverages are given licence by the food department but in the non-alcoholic and non-carbonated category, the factory operator needs a BIS certificate, which the Honest People Beverages lacked, he added.

As per the BIS standard, one has to pay Rs 1.5 lakh fee. Besides, testing labs and machines have to be installed in the factory as per the BIS standards.

The plant on which action has been taken failed to take licence under category number 14, instead got a licence to work in the category of 99. Thus the authorities did not ask the plant operator to apply for BIS certification.

However, when the inspection was carried out, it came to fore that the plant was packing non-processed water without BIS standards. A case of cheating has been registered under 420 of IPC in this case.