ABSTRACT

To assess the bacterial load in bubble top water and check its compliance with Indian and international standards. Safe drinking water is a fundamental need of human life. It is generally believed that bottled water is safe for usage without any additional processing methods. For long-distance travelers, it serves as the only source of reliable drinking water. Several authors have reported that bottled water does not always meet the acceptability standards. In this study 15 samples of different brands of bubble top drinking water were collected in a sterile disposable plastic container. From each sample collected 5 ml of water was centrifuged and the supernatant was discarded. From the sediment 50 ?l was transferred to Nutrient agar and MacConkey agar. Using a sterile inoculation loop, the drop was spread on the entire plate on both the agar. The Nutrient agar and MacConkey agar plates were incubated at 37ºc, aerobically for 24hours.In this study, 15 water samples were analyzed. In all the 15 samples the bacterial load is found to be very high and shockingly above than any prescribed standard. The quantity of bacteria in Nutrient agar was to the extreme while the MacConkey agar indicates the presence of coliform bacteria in the bubble top water. According to this study, none of the bottled drinking water manufacturers are maintaining any standards in providing clean and safe drinking water for human consumption. Surveillance of bottled water manufacturing industries in the settings on a regular basis needs to be done by regulatory agencies. These measures will ensure safe and wholesome bottled water for public usage. Keywords: Bottled drinking water, bacterial load, Human consumption, Surveillance
Publication date: 01/08/2021

https://ijbpas.com/pdf/2021/August/MS_IJBPAS_2021_AUG_SPCL_1033.pdf

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https://doi.org/10.31032/IJBPAS/2021/10.8.1033