Not a drop to drink....
I always failed to comprehend the fact why the authorities always say that pesticide found in colas are beyond allowed limits. Does that mean if pesticide quantity is within limits cola then that give the cola companies enough rights to sell their stuff? Is it necessary to add the pesticide in colas to get the extra fizz ?
The cause of worry in colas is a chemical known as Lindane. This chemical used as a pesticide "is volatile with roughly 90% entering the atmosphere and ultimately being deposited in rain."[Wikipedia source]
"CSE experts claimed to have found that the levels of Lindane, a confirmed carcinogen, were more than 54 times above the BIS (Bureau of Indian Standards-ed.) limit." [source]
So the main source of Lindane in colas is nothing else but the water used. But ain't the tap water in plants undergo any purification process ?
Despite spending shit-load of money on advertisements, signing new contracts with a new film-star every year, the cola companies are yet to come up with decent water treatment plants.
Net result is:
"Pepsi contains 30 times more pesticides, and there is a 27 times increase in pesticides in Coke compared to 2003" [source]
That is even more disturbing as if the amount of carcinogen has increased in colas by 30 times, how much more it has increased in our normal tap water ?
Our health minister who seem to be tackling Indian health problems via the silver-screen rather than in real life had appealed to the film-stars not to act in cola ads. Shall he now focus his attention back to where it is more needed.Reminds me of the scence in "Main Azad Hoon" where Azad tells the minister "Even after 40 years of independance you failed to give us clean drinking water.What can you give us now ?"
A year from now we will be celebrating 60-th anniversary of our freedom.Could Dr. Anbumani ensure us clean aerated water devoid of cancer causing chemicals and cleaner drinking water too.
3 comments:
What about arsenic in our ground water? What about in general deposition of pesticide in ground water? Give a thought over it. It is true that the Cola companies are not giving us the right product. And they should take corrective measures. But why don’t why shout louder in general about crisis in safe drinking water. May be we are generically biased against big fat dollar companies. May be we are less bothered about our basic questions: hygiene, primary health care and safe drinking water. We are tolerant all this day toady problems which are crippling us slowly but steadily. We are too tolerant. We want to see only things which have glamour. Even, in our protests too.
Cola companies could be targeted as that is a sure shot way to gain publicity.What I was trying to point out that cola companies are at fault as they don't have decent water treatment plant. But our government is at bigger fault as the impurity level in water is increasing 30 times just over a period of three years. Unfortunately the persceptives are screwed up and we are still debating to drink or not to drink colas while the more important question of impurities in our drinking water is not given any thought.
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