Islamabad - Most of the restaurants in the federal capital, even in posh areas, serve unfiltered tap water to their customers along with foods exposing them many diseases such as Typhoid, Hepatitis etc.
The people have to drink unfiltered water without knowing that they may suffer from water-born diseases. Restaurants located in all major markets of the Capital, including Aabpara, Civic Centre (Melody), Sitara Market (G-7), Super Market (F-6), Jinnah Super (F-7), Ayub Market (F-8), F-10, G-8 Markaz, Karachi Company (G-9 Markaz), I-9 & I-10 Markaz and other areas, can be seen serving unfiltered water.
There are no proper arrangements even to store water at the restaurants. Either tap water coming from rooftop tanks or stored in plastic drums is served, which is not fit for drinking.
The owner of a restaurant in I-10 area, when asked, said the water supplied by Capital Development Authority (CDA) was fit for human consumption. He and his family like others used tap water at home, he added. When his attention was drawn towards water filtration plants installed by the CDA in every sector, he said his customers never complained regarding serving unfiltered water. When contacted, Food Inspector Muhammad Asif Tanveer told APP that his department continued to launch operation against all restaurants, which serve unhygienic food and water to their customers. Last month, owners of 50 restaurants were challaned while five were sealed, he added.
Muhammad Zafar Iqbal, who mostly eats food from restaurants, said in the absence of strict check and balance the owners served food prepared in unhygienic conditions with unfiltered water.
They (owners) were least concerned about their customers’ health, rather their main objective was to earn money with minimum expenses, he added.
He said it should be made mandatory for all restaurants to have water filtration facility at their premises with certificate from food department authorities that filtered water was fit for human consumption.
Dr Hammad Aslam, medical specialist of Pakistan Institute Medical
Sciences (PIMS), said most of the diseases were caused by unfiltered water and unhygienic foods.