Is the milk you drink safe?
By Vishal Gulati
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Aug 21 — Is the milk you drink safe? Millions of consumers all over the country cannot be sure ever since the controversy over synthetic milk erupted some time ago.

Reports estimate that millions of litres of synthetic milk are produced in Uttar Pradesh and consumed in and outside the state. Even byproducts like khoya and paneer made from this milk are sold in different states.

Officials of the Public Health Department reveal that they have no equipment or trained staff to detect such adulteration. There is also lack of awareness at all levels.

Those involved in the operation are milkmen, contractors, dairies and corrupt officials.

The modus operandi is simple. Milkmen churn the cream from the milk and convert it into ghee. The skimmed milk is then treated with a mixture of refined oil and fat to give it the required thickness. Of course, one can never get absolutely synthetic milk. "Pure synthetic milk will evaporate when boiled and will give out a foul smell. This liquid is always mixed with natural milk", says Dr G. Dewan, a former Medical Officer of Health of Chandigarh Administration.

A senior official in the Health Department, on condition of anonymity, maintains that the administration has neither the will nor the time to check the sale of adulterated milk. The sampling of milk is not done before 7 a.m and after 5 p.m. during which period the milkmen who supply 3 lakh ml of milk every day to the residents of the city, have a field day.

Most of the vendors use their connections to prevent sampling. Others even manage to doctor the reports. Unions have been formed to put pressure on the administration. The pressure mounts when the department collects and examines samples from the milkmen.

Moreover, the existing equipment can only check whether the milk contains the prescribed quantity of fat and solid not fat (SNF). However, if someone adds foreign inorganic fat in skimmed milk, it is impossible to detect.

Doctors warn that the presence of urea in the milk can affect the human body's immune system and cause severe stomach complications. "The presence of certain chemicals in the milk has carcinogenic effects" says Dr Dewan.

He says most often the adulteration goes undetected because there is no immediate and noticeable effect. If a person consumes rapeseed oil adulterated with agremone oil, the adverse effects are apparent almost immediately. The victim suffers from symptoms of dropsy, characterised by nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, followed by sever swelling of the body.

However, adulterated milk is a slow poison and children can get poisioned from the very first day.

Inquiries at the laboratory in Sector 11 reveal that even the milk plants, which procure milk from far-flung areas, use sodium hydroxide to prevent the formation of lactic acid, which spoils the milk.

However, critics feel the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act in its present form has been unable to ensure the quality of food. It has not been updated since it was enacted in 1954 and they feel that it has been unable to provide a system that could ensure public health. Even the Chandigarh Administration has been violating the PFA Act by not appointing the required number of officials for sampling and testing of food items.

Tests to detect adulteration

• If milk is suspected to be adulterated only with water, this can be easily detected by putting a drop of it on a smooth glass. Pure milk flows slowly leaving a whitish trail, whereas diluted milk will run down quickly leaving no mark.
• If milk is adulterated with starch or other thickening agent it can be detected by adding a few drops of iodine. If the milk turns blue, it proves the presence of starch.
• To check synthetic milk, use of multiple reagent strips. Dip the strip in the sample and remove quickly. Check the dark shade of the protein area with the indicators in the chart.
• Yellow, yellowish-green, green to greenish-blue, indicate the presence of protein. synthetics milk will show a negative or near negative protein reaction.
  
  
  
  

Frozen food makes way into kitchens
By Varinder Singh
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Aug 21 — Do you want to relish dainty alphanso mangoes in the thick of winter or peas, with all of their freshness in May or June? Yes, it is possible with the frozen and tinned food which is becoming a way of life.

Though the concept of frozen and tinned food was introduced in the region in 1991, it started gaining ground just two to three years back with the middle class getting aware about it and adopting it for the added convenience provided by it. The frozen and tinned food saves a lot of time and hassles involved in the preparation of conventional food. And what has contributed towards its popularity was the introduction of hi-tech refrigerators the during this period. These refrigerators are more suitable for the storage of such food as they offer very low temperatures — between -18°C and 23°C —, which ensure a longer life to frozen food. "Earlier, people would discard the frozen food, expressing apprehension that it had a heavy dose of preservative or the food in containers could be rotten.

But as they have become aware about its utility, even from economical point of view, more and more are going in for frozen food, particularly the non-vegetarian food, offered in a wide range by different Indian and multinational companies, which are jumping in the arena of such food in a big way," said a Sector 17 trader, dealing in this food.

According to Mr Parveen K. Gupta, a distributor, the annual consumption of frozen and tinned food in the city alone is about 450 tonnes, with Ludhiana and Jalandhar following suit. He said besides catering to the needs of the local population, the city has become a main centre of such foods in the region. "Last year, local distributors supplied 160 tonnes of both kinds of food to the Army for soldiers in the Siachen sector. Actually, it has the potential of becoming a food of future. In 1991, when the frozen food was introduced in the country, the business done by different traders in the city was not more than Rs 50,000, but last year, the business touched Rs 1 crore," he said. Mr Gupta added that the fast growth in the number of supermarkets in the city has also given a boost to the sales as these markets had the ultra-modern facilities required for the storage of such food.

Frozen food has more nutritional value as low temperature and hygienic packaging prevent its decaying and contamination by proliferation of bacteria. "Moreover, storage at -10°C also ensures that there is no bacteria in the food. This is an added advantage in the case of non-vegetarian food, which is often contaminated when bought from local sources. Actually, the frozen process conforms to the international standards, which specify that a chicken should be packed within 30 minutes of its slaughter as otherwise the decaying process sets in," said Mr Gupta, adding that if the convenience and saving of time was counted, frozen food was on a par with the one available in the market, as far as the price was concerned. About the shelf-life of such food, he said it could be stored at the appropriate temperature for about three to four years and still not lose its nutritional value.

According to sources in the market, about 200 products of both categories are available in the market, ranging from frozen peas to mixed vegetable and from sarson ka saag to aalu ki tikki and paneer. In addition to this, in the tinned food category one could relish delicacies such as pav bhaji, dal makhni, matar mushroom and and a number of fruits. And in the non-veg category chicken sausages, chicken nuggets, prawn pickle, fish pickle, mutton cubes, mutton chops and chicken boneless are available.

Encouraged by the response from people, a number of multinational corporations are jumping in the fray. "While the consumer is becoming more quality conscious and has started preferring packed food, the multinational companies are seeing a big potential in the so far untouched field and are trying to cash on it by introducing scores of new products," quipped a trader.

'I was presumed dead for 10 days'
By Amarjit Thind
Tribune News Service

CHANDI MANDIR, Aug 21 — "I was part of the team that captured the strategic Jubbar Hill for which Major M. Sarvanan has been awarded the Vir Chakra (posthumously). I too was presumed dead and the authorities sent a telegram informing my family about my death", says Naik Shatrughan Singh of 1 Bihar who was injured in the fierce fighting for the capture of the hill.

"I crawled with my injured leg, a bullet had shattered my leg, for 10 days and somehow managed to reach the place from where the casualties were being lifted by helicopters. I had to find my way back through the inhospitable terrain and could only move by night as the nearby hills had still not been cleared and I would have been an easy target for snipers," the brave soldier added while showing his leg at Western Command Hospital. His wounds are healing and he expects to don the uniform again.

Narrating the sequence of events on May 27, he said, "We were ordered to take the hill and a team of 22 men under the command of Major Sarvanan was assembled. The briefing was over at 5 p.m. At 8 p.m., we started the hard and arduous ascent to the snow-covered top.

"After negotiating our way in pitch darkness, we reached the top and were about 300 metres from the ridgeline when the enemy guns opened up. The firing was so heavy and accurate that the entire team was pinned down. We were stuck and any movement, either upwards or downwards, was impossible.

"The Major asked us to take cover and engage the enemy. He also informed the base camp that reinforcements were needed. Dawn had broken by this time. The firing continued the whole day and it was only at about 10 p.m. that another party of 15 men joined us. I was near two bunkers and could see the infiltrators in civilian dress manning the guns.

"It was a do or die mission and the men also knew it when the order to charge was given. Cries of "Bajrang Bali Ki Jai" rent the air as the men charged at the enemy bunkers. Many gallant men fell to the enemy bullets but after the long and hard fight, the bunkers were captured and victory was ours. The Major also feel to the enemy bullets while leading from the front. He was a brave and gallant officer," he added in a choked voice.

"It was then that one of the bullets shattered my leg. Since it was night and more fighting was taking place for the remaining bunkers, I kept firing and after some time realised that I was the only person left between some enemy positions.

"I crawled my way through the positions and somehow managed to reach a ravine near the ridgeline. For the next 10 days, I only moved at night and lay still under the cover of rocks. By this time, I had also run out of ration and would only eat some snow to quench my thirst. On the 10th day, I spotted some movement ahead of me and saw that I was very near the spot from where they were airlifting the casualties.

"A sense of urgency overcame me and forgetting my pain, I forged ahead. Some of the soldiers saw me and rushed forward to help me. I was taken by a helicopter to the base camp where my wounds, in which gangrene had begun to set, were tended. I was moved here and an operation was done. Bone grafting was done and now I am on the road to recovery.

"The doctors and the staff here have done a wonderful job and I am getting the best medical aid available in the country", he added with a sense of gratitude towards the doctors and nursing officers and other staff members of the hospital.

Phone subscribers a harassed lot
From Kulwinder Sangha

SAS NAGAR, Aug 21 — The computer for recording telephone complaints at the main exchange here was hit by a virus about a month ago, causing harassment to subscribers. To make matters worse, the authorities failed to make manual arrangements for booking complaints on the telephone, forcing subscribers to go to the department’s office for this purpose.

A large number of angry subscribers could be seen making a beeline every day for the department’s office in Phase V. Subscribers said they first made efforts to record their complaints on telephone numbers 198 or 672198, sometimes for two or three days, but ultimately had to go to the department’s office to lodge their complaints, which ranged from “dead” telephones to the shifting of instruments.

Mr Surinder Bhatia, a PCO owner in Phase 1, complained that his telephone had been out of order for around 20 days and he had failed to book his complaint on telephone number 198. He said he had met a junior official in this regard, but it was difficult to go to the department’s office daily after leaving his work.

A similar complaint was made by Mr Sanjiv Kumar of Phase I. He said his phone had been “dead” for around a month. The phone at the office of the Divisional Engineer, PUDA, Mr Inderjit Kumar, remained out of order from July 20 to August 15, a junior engineer with PUDA said. A number of complaints had to be made to get the telephone in working order.

Mr Harpal Singh, of Phase X said as he was a paraplegic, he depended a great deal on the telephone. He said bitterly that his telephone remained “dead” from July 11 to 20, there was a disturbance in the line from July 30 to August 5 and then again the instrument went “dead” from August 6 to 15. He said the telephone had been set right now, but was unsure how long it would work.

Mr Mohan Singh Mavi of Phase XI complained that he had visited the department’s office several times to get his telephone shifted. Almost four months had passed but nothing had happened. He was sometimes told at the Phase V phone office that the relevant file had not been received and other times that it was “non-feasible”.

Mr S.S. Barnala, a municipal councillor of Phase XI, said he wanted to shift one of his telephones to his friend’s house nearby. The line had to be given from the same telephone pole to which his phone was connected but for eight months the department did not take any action. Meanwhile, his friend shifted to another area.

The fault tester for the 67-level had been out of order for the past few days. Besides, at the telephone exchange, complaints were not being initially divided into “internal” and “external” faults. The lineman was given the entire list, leading to a wastage of time and effort.

Mr Khushwant Rai, Area manager, said the computer used for registering complaints had been out of order for the past two weeks. He said the company had been informed and people were working on the job. It would be in order shortly, he claimed. He denied that the tester was faulty. The faults were being “tested” and segregated before being attended to, he stated.

'Need to increase forests'
Tribune News Service

PANCHKULA, Aug 21 — The Governor of Haryana, Mr Mahabir Prasad, has stressed the need to increase the forest cover of the state from the existing eight per cent to 20 per cent, as specified under the National Forest Policy. He was speaking at the 50th state-level Van Mahotsava function organised by the Haryana Forest Department at the local Government college here today.

While urging the people to make Haryana a 'green state' by planting pipal, neem, bar, belpatra and anwala saplings, he said there was a need to make afforestation a mass movement. He planted a sapling of kadam on the premises of the college.

Advising the officials of the forest department to undertake plantation on waste land, panchayat land, shamlat land and along the roads, Mr Prasad said sustained efforts of the government had led to an increase in the forest cover from 3.8 per cent to the existing eight per cent. He also suggested the teaching faculty to give grace marks to students for their contribution to afforestation.

He stressed that more efforts were needed to protect the ozone layer. A number of seminars and symposiums had been held to take steps to protect the ozone layer but results were yet to be achieved. He urged the people to make important moments of their lives memorable by planting saplings. He advised the forest officials to educate the people about the importance of trees.

Mr Prasad said the problem of forest destruction could be tackled but valuable medicinal plants such as tulsi, turmeric, neem, jamun, anwala, ginger and garlic had also to be saved from being patented by foreign companies. Later, he gave away awards to the following panchayats for commendable work in the field of afforestation — Chandi Kotla and Rehna (Panchkula), Chhajpur (Panipat), Badarai (Bhiwani), Sehsola (Gurgaon), Bodha (Kurukshetra), Bayal (Mahendragarh), Manethi (Rewari), Teori (Sonepat), Sazipur (Yamunagar), Garnawaati (Rohtak) and Aruwa (Faridabad).

Ms Saroj Pawar, widow of Ramesh Pawar, a forest official who was killed on duty by timber thieves, and the mother of Purushotam Lal, a forest guard who lost his life while controlling a forest fire, were honoured by the Governor. The Financial Commissioner, Forests, Mr B.D.Dhalia, and the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, Mr Banarsi Dass, also spoke on the occasion.