Packaged Drinking Water Crisis

Packaged Drinking Water Crisis

V Murali, the leader of the Greater Tamil Nadu Packaged Drinking Water Manufacturing Units Association, said they were forced to take the step after the Madras High Court issued an order banning the extraction of groundwater by six industries. “We are extracting groundwater only for drinking purpose. Even during the times of drought, we supplied drinking water.

We sought exemption, but the court declined. So we stopped production from Thursday evening,” Murali said. He urged the State government to intervene in the matter and issue suitable orders allowing extraction of groundwater for drinking purpose.

Apart from the Greater Tamil Nadu Packaged Drinking Water Manufacturing Units Association, two other associations in the State have also announced a strike. This is sure to affect the residents and commercial establishments in the city, most of whom are almost completely dependent on packaged water, especially with the summer fast approaching.

The recent shutdown of water cans has caused the public much difficulty. The availability of drinking water is a fundamental right. There should be no impact on it. A can of water that was sold before Rs.35 was sold for Rs.70 during the strike. The strike was carried out by 1,700 shuttered water plants across Tamil Nadu.

In all, there are around 1,400 units in the State that supply packaged drinking water. Of this, 400 are in Chennai, Kancheepuram and Tiruvallur districts. There are 95 registered bubble top water production units in Chennai, that supply more than one lakh 20-litre cans every day. To produce 20 litres of RO drinking water, treatment units require 35 litres of raw water.

The strike was the result of the sealing of over 500 companies across Tamil Nadu on the orders of the Madras High Court on charges of taking underground water without a license. The court has ordered that each district appoint two attorneys to monitor the sealed water companies throughout the state. The strike was called off after the court ordered the existing sealed companies to renew their license and get a new license.

Turning its wrath on government officials who failed to close down illegal water packaging units, a division bench of the Madras High Court said it might initiate contempt action against them.

Sealing the report of the State Ground and Surface Water Resource Data regarding closure of illegal units exploiting ground water report and calling it not only laconic but also meaningless, the Madras High Court has warned of summoning the Chief Secretary if all the illegal units functioning in the State are not closed by March 3.

Now, however, whoever goes home has to fear the water. The groundwater is so polluted. Due to the low level of water and pollution of the water, people were forced into the water. Now, even in small towns, locked water cans have arrived.

Informal industry

Although the water business has grown in India, it is still not a legitimate industry. But on a global scale, it has become a formal industry. The water trade in 2019 was 20.26 lakh crore globally. The business is expected to reach 22.11 lakh crore by 2020. It is projected to be 25.79 lakh crore by 2021. Every year, the sale of 10,000 million liters of stored water is on the rise.

The sale of cold drinks has already lagged behind the sale of soft drinks. In 2017, every person in the world spent on water for one year at a cost of Rs. 2,380. That is, by 2021, Rs. It is expected to be 3,338. According to a 2017 study, the most consumed beverage is in the Asia-Pacific region.

It accounts for 42% of global consumption. It is the world’s two most populous regions: China and India. Overpopulation, poverty, and ill-health are intertwined. Therefore, the water trade in these areas is heating up. The North and South American continents are the second-largest sources of water consumption.

The main reason people seek sheltered water is the lack of groundwater and the lack of available water. Not just locally; this issue is being addressed worldwide. This does not mean that there is no water in the world. For many billions of years, the amount of water on Earth has not changed much. But now the population has increased; the industrial use of water has also increased; the location of the water has also changed.

The water used will return to Earth in a cycle. Despite the same amount of water, there is a shortage of distribution. Although 70% of the Earth’s surface is covered by water, the share of freshwater is only 2.5%. Most of the water is frozen in Polar Regions as glaciers and glaciers. Thus, the use of these freshwater populations is only 0.007%. The big disadvantage is that this water is not fully suitable for drinking.

Water-borne diseases

200 billion people worldwide are drinking only clean water. Water is polluted by mixing not an only industrial waste but also bacteria and viruses. Often, human and animal waste is mixed with drinking water. It causes water-borne diseases. Typhoid fever, diarrhea, cholera, E. coli bacterial infection, and hepatitis-A are some of them. Worldwide, 8.3 million people die of diarrhea annually.

The number of children under the age of 5 is about 3 lakh. Drinking clean water can help prevent unwanted deaths. But due to poverty, wars, environmental degradation, and drought, substantial numbers of people do not have access to clean drinking water. Meanwhile, the drinking water business is flourishing.

The thirst of Chennai

People are apprehensive about the quality of water provided in municipalities and municipalities. This fear is being used by vendors of closed water. About 10 lakh water cans are being distributed per day in Chennai alone. A family of four needs at least four water cans per week.

More than 250 catchment companies are operating in Chennai, Kanchipuram, Chengalpattu and Tiruvallur districts to meet the drinking water needs of Chennai. Even though there are so many companies, the government does not put them under proper scrutiny. Most of these were conducted without a license or license, the Madras High Court said.

People seek this water for clean drinking water. It is questionable how many of these companies are following quality control. People are drinking water in the hope that the water Awe drink is good water.

When you look at many of these stored water cans, it is doubtful whether they are cleaned. The total dissolved solids in this water, which is purified by Reverse Osmosis, should not be reduced to 500 points. However, in many water cans, the solids are up to 175 points. This can have a profound effect on health.

The government has to provide clean drinking water as clean air and clean habitat. The government is obliged to answer why groundwater is not suitable for drinking. The government must ensure the quality of the cane water that people are buying as the underground water supply is stagnant.