MUZAFFARABAD (Kashmir English): The Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Food Authority on Wednesday sealed a water filtration and bottling plant in Muzaffarabad after laboratory testing found microbiological contamination in its drinking water.
According to the Food Authority, the plant, operating under the name “Kashmir Crystal Water”, was sealed and its manufactured stock was seized following the laboratory findings.
The District Food Controller/Food Safety Officer Muzaffarabad, along with the food safety team, obtained the official water sample from the said water plant and sent it to the Pakistan Council of Research in Water Resources (PCRWR) laboratory for microbiological analysis.
The laboratory test report showed the presence of Total Coliforms, which are extremely harmful to human health and cause diseases.
The Food Authority said drinking water standards under the Azad Jammu and Kashmir Pure Food Regulations, 2019, and the Pakistan Standards and Quality Control Authority (PSQCA) require coliform bacteria to be absent from drinking water, with a permissible level of zero CFU per 100 millilitres.
The laboratory has officially declared Kashmir Crystal Water as “unsafe” based on microbiological tests.
The District Food Controller, Muzaffarabad, has sealed the water plant under the Azad Jammu and Kashmir Food Authority Act, 2017, after microbiological contamination was found.
Teams comprising Assistant Food Safety Officers (AFSOs) have been directed to immediately stop the production and supply of the water plant and seize and destroy all water bottles and cans in the market and factory.
Food Authority officials say that providing clean and quality drinking water and food to the citizens of Azad Kashmir is our top priority, and no compromise will be made on the sale of adulterated or substandard items.
