As many as 10 samples tested positive out of a total of 86 taken for testing the presence of Formalin in Chalani or imported fish into Assam, the fisheries department of the Government of Assam declared on Tuesday.
Addressing a press conference on the matter at Gauhati University today, the fisheries department noted 86 fish samples were taken from every district of the state and tested for the presence of poisonous formalin in imported fish.
A spokesperson of the department said, “We will take legal action in those districts where the fish samples tested positive for formalin. The process in that regard has already started. If found guilty, they stand to face five years in jail.”
However, the fisheries is still unclear as to how and when the formalin was added to the fishes imported into the state due to no clear evidence, the official said.
He said, “We do not have the evidence regarding where and how the formalin was mixed with the fish as of now.”
Meanwhile, it has come to the fore that not a single sample taken from Guwahati tested positive for the presence of formalin. The official informed that a total of eight samples of fish had been taken for testing from across Guwahati, none of which were found to have formalin.
The official further said that the consumption of formalin along with the fish can lead to cancer. In order to bring down the practice of adding formalin to fish imported into Assam from outside, quick detection will be facilitated with the department supplying testing kits to every district.
Based on the testing of fish samples, the department will carry out operations in the districts where samples return positive results for the presence of formalin, the official mentioned.
In addition, shedding further light into the fish samples that tested positive for formalin, the department said a Chanda fish sample from Dhemaji, Rohu and Pankaj fish samples from Barpeta, Rohu, and Chanda fish samples from Nagaon and a fish each from Bijni, Darrang, Dhubri, and Bongaigaon tested for the presence of formalin.
It may be noted that the Gauhati High Court had on May 9 sent notices to the concerned parties after hearing public interest litigation (PIL) in the case pertaining to the presence of poisonous formalin in imported fish in Assam.
A PIL was filed in the Gauhati High Court requesting a ban on the sale of imported fish containing formalin, hearing which the court notified the state government, the fishery department and food safety departments.
Moreover, the court also notified Nagaon College and asked it to file a report containing information about the matter. This comes after a finding by Nagaon College had first identified the presence of poisonous formalin in imported fishes.
Earlier, the fisheries department of Assam had asked four institutes in the state to conduct in-depth research and inquiry into the presence of formalin in imported fish.
Formalin is used as a disinfectant in industries, a preservative in some food products, funeral homes etc. It attains the state when formaldehyde is dissolved in water.
