SINDH FOOD AUTHORITY INTENSIFIES INSPECTION OF COMMERCIAL RO PLANTS FOLLOWING SINDH HIGH COURT DIRECTIVES.

Karachi October 4: In compliance with the directives of the Sindh High Court, the Sindh Food Authority (SFA) has revisited the licenses issued to companies operating water filtration and bottling plants. The SFA is committed to ensuring that water testing continues according to the standards set by the World Health Organization (WHO). As part of this initiative, the authority has ramped up its inspection campaign and has inspected 463 food business units/RO plants across the province, which are engaged in producing or providing bottled and filtered water to the public. Director General Sindh Food Authority, Muzamil Hussain Halepoto in a statement said that the inspection began with units registered with the Sindh Food Authority, as per available records. Out of the listed units, 233 were found either closed or relocated from their registered addresses. To ensure maximum coverage, the SFA teams later visited 58 newly identified plants.

During the inspections across Sindh, the teams observed that 43 plants complied with Pakistan’s standards, while 19 met WHO’s criteria. However, 13 food business units/plants were found operating in unsafe and unhealthy conditions. As a result, their production was immediately halted to protect the public from the harmful effects of contaminated water. The Sindh Food Authority issued improvement notices to 238 units, identifying issues related to safety and quality. These units have been given 14 days to address the concerns raised by the SFA teams. So far, the water samples from 82 units have been found satisfactory and safe for human consumption. However, 62 samples were deemed unfit for consumption, leading to the suspension of production and initiation of legal action.

In addition, 52 RO plants not included in the original list were inspected, along with 17 bottled water RO plants. Units with unsatisfactory results have been temporarily sealed. Today, the Director General of Sindh Food Authority, Mr. Muzammil Hussain Halepoto, submitted these details to the Sindh High Court, which commended the authority’s efforts and instructed them to expedite their work to ensure the provision of clean drinking water to the public.