Chennai, July 04: The Chennai Corporation on Friday seized and destroyed five tonnes of mangoes and two tonnes of papaya that were ripened using chemical substances.
During the raids conducted on wholesalers and retailers across the city, it seized 300 kg of calcium carbide in stone and powder form. Two wholesale shops in the Koyambedu Wholesale Fruit Market were sealed by officials of the civic body’s Health Department with police assistance.
Mayor M. Subramanian, who supervised the operations at Koyambedu, told reporters that this season, apart from calcium carbide, Ethyril, another chemical, was being used by fruit-sellers.
“After Ethyril is sprayed on them, the fruits are covered with a gunny bag. The next day they turn yellow and ripe.”
Urging fruit-sellers not to use chemicals as they were harmful, he said the civic body would try and find the source of the chemicals.
Retailers in Royapettah said calcium carbide was being supplied to them by wholesalers along with fruits.
S. Srinivasan, Koyambedu Wholesale Fruits Association president, said the association was not for artificial ripening. “But vendors do not have other means to ripen fruits.
We are planning to invite experts from the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University so that we can find some alternative to the use of chemicals.”
He said members of the association and the offending vendors had met Corporation officials and appealed [to them] to remove the seal on the two shops.
“It is a very harsh punishment. We agree that the vendors committed a mistake, but they have promised not to repeat the act. We request the Corporation and government authorities to help us find other means of ripening fruits,” he said.
–Agencies