Mr Thakur said this while commenting on the recent amendments made by the government to enforce a set of rules for adherance by manufacturers of bottled water at a seminar on Mineral and Bottled Water held at New Delhi.

Mr Thakur said that recently notified amendments to the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act would allow enough flexibility to the producers to create new products in the category of packaged drinking water. "Despite mushrooming of a number of manufacturers and products, experience shows that the exisitng quality of mineral water, for which standards have been specified, have not been adhered to," Mr Thakur said.

The government, he said, was trying to solve this problem through new notifications which seek to make it mandatory for producers to get certification from the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS). Certain microbiological parameters have also been laid down to ensure that the products are safe for human consumption, he added.

He called on the industry to ensure that quality of the products are up to the mark. Mr Thakur asked the producers to refrain from making claims that they cannot substantiate.