As the rainy season begins, the scourge of water-borne diseases runs amok. Hundreds of patients with diseases such as diarrehoea, cholera, dysentery and typhoid are admitted to hospitals and health posts across the country. Others for lack of proper and timely treatment succumb to these ailments. More recently, however, the number of patients being admitted to hospitals has doubled. Most of the patients being admitted have been found to be the victims of adulterated food, including artificially ripened fruits and chemically treated vegetables. Some of the patients have also complained of unhygienic food and water that some eateries and food-joints in the capital blithely serve.

The practice of using chemicals to ripen fruits and make vegetables and other edibles look attractive has gone on unchecked in recent days. The inability of the Department of Food Technology and Quality Control (DoFTQC), which is responsible for monitoring the quality of the food products available in the market, has further encouraged unscrupulous traders. The government in order to discourage such activities should punish the traders who indulge in such practices to make a quick buck at the cost of public health. But most importantly, it should provide the necessary equipment and other logistic support to enable DoFTQC to monitor the quality of edible commodities available in the market.