Even though manufacturers of water purifiers make “tall claims” on the purity and safety of the water from their products, none of the leading brands have adopted international standards, and provide “sub-standard” drinking water to consumers.
This was revealed by a study undertaken by consumer activist, Mr Bejon Misra.
Releasing the study here, Mr Misra said that the domestic water purifier manufacturers were aggressively marketing “in an irresponsible manner” the chemical-based technology to purify water, which is a “serious public health issue.”
There is also a huge unorganised market for water purifiers with no regulatory mechanism to check their claims and standards, he said. Further, the labels on the products do not mention the certified chemicals used to treat the water and how the levels of their presence can be monitored by users.
“All the brands fall short of adequate disclosure requirements to enable consumers to make an informed choice and lack of stringent standards allows these companies to sell their products without checks,” he said.
Mr Misra felt that the Government should prescribe standards and set up a referral laboratory to check usage of harmful chemicals.
The study has noted that use of chemicals, including chlorine, in these purifiers should be carefully monitored to ensure that the dosage is well below the ‘safe' level.
Chemicals
Also, other chemicals used in the cleaning process decompose during the filtration and treatment of water, which, when combined with other routinely used materials, can be harmful .
The World Bank has estimated that 80 per cent of communicable diseases in India are water-related.
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