KMC to start week-long malaria prevention drive
In sync with World Malaria Day today, the Kolkata Municipal Corporation has announced a host of measures to prevent the disease.
The Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) on Saturday claimed that tests conducted on chicken samples collected from three of the boroughs in the city revealed no traces of formalin while the civic body is yet to conducted tests on the other samples and continue its food safety drive.
The civic body had been collecting chicken samples from food vendors and restaurants across the city after reports surfaced that dead chickens in Baduria are being injected with formalin and are being supplied to the city from the districts.
The KMC’s food safety officers had been raiding chicken stockists in the markets, restaurants and roadside shops to collect both raw and cooked chicken samples. These samples were being examined in the civic body laboratories.
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Addressing a Press conference on Saturday, Mr Atin Ghosh, member mayor-in-council (MMIC), health, said “The results of the chicken samples collected from three of the boroughs- five, six and seven- under the KMC on 20, 21 and 22 March revealed no traces of formalin. We had conducted the tests on the samples in our laboratories. “
Adding to this, the MMIC said “The Jadavpur University (JU) experts had written to us previously to allow them to conduct further tests on the samples and had asked us to write to the JU registrar for the purpose. Since they are not pathologists, they have, however, asked us to send extracts from the raw chicken samples and send it to them after processing it. The experts have also instructed us how to obtain the extracts and process it. We will be sending the samples to them accordingly for carrying out further tests.”
Mr Ghosh further added that the civic body will continue to conduct the food safety drives and collect chicken samples from different areas along with adulterated food.
The adulterated food items seized by the KMC on Friday will be undergoing tests in the laboratory following which the results will come out expectedly on Monday, confirmed the MMIC.
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