MGP Launches "Buy and Burn" Campaign Against Adulterated Tea

Prof. A. Ramalingam, Member, Mysore Grahakara Parishat writes

Taking a leaf out of Gandhiji's Swadeshi movement, MGP launched on 9-11-08 a "Buy and Burn" campaign against adulterated tea.

Adulteration of tea has been going on in a large scale in Mysore for several years. Tea sold under various brand names (which do not include well-known national brands) are being adulterated with cancer-causing colours such as metanil yellow (used normally to dye textiles), red oxide (used normally to give red colour to cement floors) and other dyes used in wall paints and leather industry. Most roadside tea stalls use such adulterated tea powder since it is much cheaper than well-known brands. This practice is placing lakhs of Mysoreans under serious health threat.

Despite repeated warnings from MGP, Mysore City Corporation has been extremely lackadaisical about this threat to public health. Three weeks ago, MGP met the Mayor and demonstrated to him adulteration in tea. Shocked by this revelation, he ordered the Health Department of MCC to take immediate action against the hazards of adulteration. MCC has conducted a few raids since then and seized sizable amounts of adulterated tea from various shops.

To increase awareness among the shopkeepers about the dangers of adulterated tea, MGP has been arranging demonstrations by school children on simple ways of testing adulteration. The harmful effects of adulteration are also explained in these demonstrations. When tea powder sold in their shops is shown to be adulterated, many shopkeepers have come forward not to carry adulterated tea in their shops. Such shop keepers have been given "We Do Not Sell Adulterated

Tea" plaques to display in their shops. The first batch of plaques were presented on 5-11-08 by noted Gandhian Prof. K. Srinivasan, well-known singer Smt. Saroja Nagaraj and social activists, Prof. Kalachenne Gowda, Sri. Dhananjaya and Smt. Poornima.

The "Buy and Burn" campaign against adulterated tea is intended to increase the awareness of the public regarding the scourge of adulteration. It was launched by Dr. H.A.B. Parpia, former Director of CFTRI, Prof.K. Srinivasan, Sri. S.N. Lakshminarayana, former Librarian of the University of Mysore, Prof. S.K. Ananda Thirtha, Principal of K.Puttaswamy P.U. College and Prof. Kalachenne Gowda.

Photo1: Tea Burning

Photo2: Dignitaries, Prof Anand Thirtha, Prof Srinivasan and Dr.
Parpia in foreground, Sri. Lakshminarayana and Prof. Kalachenne Gowda
in background.