ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Council for Research in Water Resources (PCRWR) on Thursday declared at least 28 brands of bottled water unsafe for human consumption due to microbiological or chemical contamination.

According to the organisation, 176 samples of mineral water brands were collected from 20 cities across Pakistan.

A comparison of test results with the bottled water quality standards of the Pakistan Standards & Quality Control Authority (PSQCA) revealed that 28 brands were unsafe for human consumption due to microbiological or chemical contamination.

Ten brands including Miran Drinking Water, Pak Aqua, Jel Bottled Water, Neo, Aab-e-Dubai, Eltsen, Pure Water, Aqua Health, Oslo and More Plus were found to be unsafe due to the presence of higher levels of sodium.

Five brands including, One Pure Drinking Water, Indus, Premium Safa Purified Water, Orwell and Natural Pure Life were found to be unsafe due to the presence of higher levels of arsenic, while, one brand called Hunza Utter Water was found unsafe due to presence of high level of Potassium than the permissible limit.

Similarly, another 16 brands such as SS Water, Sip Sip Premium Drinking Water, Miran Drinking Water, D-Nova, Sky Rain, Neo, Pure Water, Dream Pure, Aqua Sharav Pure Drinking Water, Marvi, Ice Well, Akb Sky, Karakorum Spring Water, More Plus, Essentia and Life Inn were found contaminated with bacteria.

Published in Dawn, February 7th, 2025