Hyderabad: Be wary of the mineral water you consume while travelling on trains in the city. Local manufacturers have been distributing counterfeit mineral water bottles that bear striking resemblance to popular branded products to metro station vendors.
The illegal practice is prevalent across railway and metro stations, where unsuspecting travellers in their rush buy fake products, which use brand names and designs similar to popular brands. The street-smart operatives use names that closely resemble those of established brands.
Meanwhile, many commuters have voiced concern over water bottles of fake brands that are in the market.
Mahender, who travels from the RTC crossroads Metro Rail station, said, “This could lead to several health issues because one is not sure of the quality and genuineness of the water inside the bottles.”
He is not wrong as bereft of quality control checks, the duplicate bottles contain contaminated water coming through unscientific purification processes.
Mineral water companies have condemned this unethical business practice.
E. Raghu, a distributor of Bisleri water, said “This obnoxious trend reflects poorly on our company. While we have strict and precise mechanisms as regards quality, the local bottlers give a damn to such health considerations. As they use name and logos that appear similar to ours, we face problems in the end.”
Authorities, on the other hand, are stepping up efforts to stop fake mineral water bottles from entering stall premises.
A staffer at a Metro Rail station said “We regularly check food products that are sold in stalls. If any fake brands or expired products are found, we immediately clear the products and penalize the stall managers.”
