HYDERABAD: The Institute of Preventive Medicine's (IPM) plans to have a packaged drinking water testing and certifying facility, the first of its kind in the State Government sector, are steadily inching forward with the institute now scouting for a suitable site for the facility.

The facility, once it comes up, will enable the public to approach the institute with their own samples of water to get them tested and certified as safe and also to know whether the samples meets standards specified by the Bureau of Indian Standards.

"That sort of testing or certifying, when done in private labs can cost you a minimum of Rs. 5,000. We intend to lower that cost significantly for the public with our facility," IPM director P. Sucharita Murthy said.

The advanced facility, expected to cost over Rs. 1.5 crore, requires around 6,000 square feet, for which the institute is now checking out various options. Though the initial plans were to locate the facility on the IPM campus, adjacent to the main building, authorities are currently thinking about the possibility of adding one more floor to the main building.

"The proposals are under preparation and we expect the civil works to begin in about three months," Ms. Murthy said.

IPM had come out with the idea of the facility in the backdrop of increasing complaints on drinking water quality. The facility will monitor presence of micro-organisms, trace metals and pesticide in the samples.

Analysis of soft drinks

Meanwhile, IPM is awaiting results of the laboratory analysis of samples of different soft drinks including Pepsi and Coca Cola that it had collected and sent to the Central Food Technological Research Institute (CFTRI) in Mysore.

"CFTRI has asked for a few more days to complete its report since it is flooded with samples from across the country," Ms. Murthy added.

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