(Guinness Record Holder for letters in Newspapers)
Ban on ‘Maggi’ noodles subsequent to various laboratory-tests in different states confirming excess presence of harmful lead, has hit news-headlines continuously for several days with even court-cases filed against celebrity-stars endorsing its through advertisements featuring ‘Maggi’ noodles.
It is surprising that no one from media has recalled that mega-star Amitabh Bachchan disclosed at Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Ahmadabad about his not advertising for cola-drinks after a school-student at Jaipur drew his attention about harmful ingredients in cola-drinks. It is significant that cola-companies voluntarily stopped selling cola-drinks in schools worldwide in view of increasing obesity in school-going children. If ‘Maggi’ noodles can be banned for its harmful contents, then Indian government should also not only ban advertisements but even sale of cola drinks in the country. Earlier also, soft-drink manufacturers were asked to remove an oil from their products which was found to be harmful for health.
It is time that Union government, Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) and soft-drink manufacturers should revive drinks like old and famous rose-flavoured ones, which can not only replace cola-drinks in India but even dominate global-market by breaking monopoly of harmful cola-drinks in tune with Prime Minister’s ambitious ‘Make in India’ concept. It will rather earn foreign-revnue for the country rather than Indian money being drained out to multinational cola-manufacturers.
