Morung Express News
Dimapur | June 25
The Dimapur Municipal Council (DMC) collected fish samples in Dimapur for tests on June 25. The samples were collected from New Market and Railway Bazaar.
The DMC Administrator Moa Sangtam said that samples were collected from New Market and Railway Bazaar. “Six different varieties of imported fish were taken as samples from different shops at the two markets,” told Sangtam to the media.
While stating that more samples will be collected on Tuesday, he informed that the samples will be collected from the “auction” points. It will then be sent to the State Public Health Laboratory, Kohima for analysis.
He said that the DMC do not have the power to prosecute but added that if the samples are found to be contaminated, the police will be informed. “Contamination at source is a possibility but we cannot rule out the chances of retailers indulging in it,” said the veterinarian attached to the DMC, who undertook the sample collection. The veterinarian though added that the speculation is subject to the test results.
According to him, formalin (chemical name - formaldehyde) is considered a human carcinogen and cannot be sold openly in the market. Queried on how the caution from the state Health Department has impacted sales of fish here, the Administrator said that they have not observed any significant downturn in sales since the warning.
