Hyderabad police raid illegal water bottling plants, 3 held

Hyderabad: In a joint operation, the sleuths of Commissioner’s Task Force, South-East Zone Team, Hyderabad, GHMC food safety officer, Circle-08, and Revenue officials raided three water bottling plants in Chandrayangutta, Santosh Nagar, and Kanchanbagh on Saturday.

The police arrested Mohammad Sajjad (34), Syed Siraj (36), and Salam bin Naser un Naqeeb (46) for producing and selling counterfeit branded water bottles without obtaining the required licenses and safety certifications.

Officials seized 23,808 500ml bottles and 4,800 1-liter bottles, with a total estimated value of Rs. 3,34,080. The seized items were handed over to Circle-08, GHMC, and the Hyderabad food inspector for further investigation.

According to Ande Srinivasa Rao, Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police, the accused were running the water bottling plants without mandatory certifications such as BIS, Trading Licenses, or FSSAI approvals. They were found producing counterfeit versions of famous brands, and marketing them under fake brand names like "Bistlery," "Brishleri," "Barley," and "Kenvey," while the original brand trademarks are Bisleri and Kinley.

As the water produced in these plants was found to have low Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) levels, the police have urged consumers to exercise caution while purchasing bottled water and check TDS levels before consumption to avoid potential health risks.