By: Priyanka Saurabh
Adulteration is no longer limited to food and drink, it has seeped into our thinking, relationships and system. Be it stones in peanuts or detergent in milk, it is an extension of the culture of profiteering. The silence of the consumer, the laxity of the government and the “chalta hai” mentality of the society have made it acceptable. Adulteration is a moral crisis, which is slowly making not only the body but also the soul sick. Till the time honesty is not supported and truth is not given space, every grain will remain under suspicion – and every morsel will seem like poison.
On hearing the word adulteration, images of fake milk, peanuts mixed with stones, colour in tea leaves and dust in spices flash in the mind. But these images are not limited to the stomach. The biggest adulteration that is happening today is in our thinking, conscience and system. Along with every product sold in the market, our sensibilities, honesty and morality are also slowly getting polluted. And the funny thing is – we have accepted this adulteration as so common that now when the real thing comes in front of us, we start getting suspicious.
Finding stones in peanuts is no longer a surprise. Pebbles in lentils, colour in peas, powder in salt and wax in ghee – all these have now become permanent members of life. From shopkeepers to big brands, everyone is involved in the blind race for profits. Everyone wants more profit at less cost, and the easiest way to do this is adulteration. Adulteration in intention, cheating in profit, and sacrifice of customer’s health.
From the streets of the village to the noise of the city, everywhere is the same sad story. The red chillies in the pickle shine, but in reality it is the colour used to dye clothes. The foam in the milk is not the freshness of the dairy but the magic of detergent. And the greenery seen on the vegetables is not the result of nature but of chemicals. What we eat is not poisoning our body but slowly poisoning our soul.
There was a time when milk, ghee or grains would come from someone’s house and would be accepted blindly. Today, even the sweets brought by relatives need to be checked – lest they are adulterated. In the market, “purity” is now just a branding tool, it has nothing to do with reality. Writing “100% pure” does not make things pure, but the consumer’s eyes are blindfolded to such an extent that he does not even think.
Lead content in children’s toffees, lime in flour, synthetic colours in turmeric – these are not just health issues, these are signs of moral degradation of the society. And the sad thing is that not only shopkeepers or companies are responsible for this adulteration, but also our tolerant society which remains silent despite knowing everything. Which lives with the mentality of “it’s okay”, and dies slowly.
Adulteration is not limited to just food and drink. Adulteration of emotions, adulteration of selfishness in relationships, adulteration of pretense in prayers and the most dangerous – adulteration of ideologies in politics. Earlier people lived and died for ideas, now ideas come in ‘packages’. Nowadays both ‘secular’ and ‘nationalist’ can be sold in the same advertisement – just the advertisement should be right. Who is speaking the truth and who is lying – this is now decided by the troll army, not logic and wisdom.
Sometimes it seems that adulteration has become our identity. Adulteration of promises in election manifestos, adulteration of news in newspapers, adulteration of facts on social media – a world of adulteration is surrounding us from every side. And when someone speaks the truth, he is either called ‘anti-national’ or having a ‘paid’ agenda. This is the real tragedy.
On the other hand, the hunger for profiteering is also not stopping. The businessman knows that if he adds 5% stones to peanuts, he will earn lakhs of rupees at the end of the year. Companies know that if they add a little powdered colour, customers will find it “fresh”. And even after knowing all this, the consumer is helpless – because there are few options and the truth is expensive.
The government runs ‘food inspection campaigns’ from time to time. Some samples are tested, some licenses are cancelled. But the real question is – is there no adulteration in this system? Are these campaigns just a sham? After all, how do those powerful companies, whose products are proven to be adulterated, still continue to sell them so freely?
The writer who speaks on adulteration is also a part of the system which compromises many times. If a reporter wants to do a story against an adulterating businessman, his editor thinks of advertising. If a doctor raises his voice against fake medicines, the pharmaceutical companies blacklist him. And the common public? It has been cheated so many times that it no longer has the power to resist.
In this adulterated environment, there are some people who are working honestly. Those who do organic farming in their fields, those who make sweets without adulteration, those who do not mix water in milk. But their struggle is very difficult. Consumers abandon them calling them expensive, and the government entangles them in rules instead of supporting them. In such a situation, speaking the truth and selling correctly have both become a kind of ‘revolution’.
To stop adulteration that has penetrated deep into the society, not just stringent laws but a cultural movement is needed. We have to teach children that truth is the biggest business. We have to be vigilant as consumers, ask questions, investigate, and most importantly – not compromise our conscience.
A time will come when the adulterator will be afraid to taste even the sweets made at his own home. When the society will reach such a moral level that the one selling lies will not be able to stand in the market. But that time will come only when we all understand our responsibility. Otherwise today there is a stone in the peanut, tomorrow it will be in the soul too.
Those who think that adulteration is just a consumer problem are thinking very narrowly. This crisis is a crisis of our nation’s credibility. If we are selling fake products to our own citizens, then what will we give to the world? The talk of “Make in India” is hollow as long as ‘Adulteration in India’ prevails.
Ultimately this fight is not about the taste of food, but about the truth of life. Because today’s adulterated food items not only spoil health, they make the entire society sick. A stone not only pierces the peanuts but also pierces relationships and trust. And if we do not wake up even now, then we will only hand over a plate of tasty poison to the next generation.
The writer is a Research Scholar in Political Science, Poet, freelance journalist and columnist
