Mumbai: 91-year-old, Shiv Shankar Gupta, claimed that some branded salts that are in the market contain high-level of potassium ferrocyanide, which can be harmful to human beings. He has offered to pay Rs 1 crore for those who can deny the presence of this harmful chemical in the salt. Naming brands like Tata, Nirma, Hindustan, etc, Gupta said, “I have sent samples of some salts of various brands to an American Lab which proved that Tata Salt and Tata Salt Lite have unusually high-level of cyanide. However, Tata Salt Rock has cyanide in its limits.”
He also went on to say that this is not limited to Tata Salt, but it is across all salts that are not natural but are by-products of industrial residue. As per the test results shared by Gupta, Tata Salt contains cyanide levels at 1.85mg/kg, Sambhar Refined Salt is at 4.71mg/kg and for Tata Salt Lite the level is 1.90 mg/kg. Gupta, who is the chairman of Godhum Grains and Farm Product alleged the industrial waste that is marketed as packaged edible salt, makes people vulnerable to diseases like cancer, hyperthyroidism, high BP, impotence, obesity and kidney failure. Gupta stated he started his fight against these brands 20 years back, but now he has reports that back his claims.
He has been writing to various governments and agencies like FSSAI, Salt Commissioner and others to bring it to their notice about the findings. He also filed an RTI which stated that many new variety of salts in the market of the existing brands, have not sort approval from FSSAI as well. Apart from being in gem business, Gupta has been in the salt business for a long time. “I export safe natural, rock salts to other countries,” Gupta added. He also said that India’s indigenous natural salt industry, spread over Kutch, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, has systematically been destroyed by successive governments, hailing ‘iodised’ salt as a healthy alternative. He stressed that the idea of iodised salt is a myth that has been created. When quizzed why he is not taking the legal route, he stated, “Legal route is time consuming and he does not intend to do that.”
