HYDERABAD: At least 50 per cent of the hand sanitisers that are being sold in the market are fake and their contents could be life-threatening if used as a substitute for liquor.
After a recent tragedy in Andhra Pradesh, wherein 14 people drank sanitiser and died, the Telangana Police has started cracking the whip on those making and selling hand sanitisers without a licence.
As liquor prices have been jacked up, tipplers are often tempted to consume hand sanitiser as it contains alcohol.
Some sanitisers use methyl alcohol or wood alcohol, which are poisonous when combined with ethyl alcohol.
With a misconception that any alcohol can give them a high, many are drinking sanitiser and risking their lives, drug formulation experts say.
Pointing out the difference between regular alcohol and the one used in sanitisers, Kaushani Paul, a formulation scientist, said, "The alcohol used in stiff drinks is ethyl alcohol or ethanol, which undergoes multiple steps of purification (mostly via distillation). This is what makes it costlier. In comparison, sanitisers are largely (70%-80%) composed of isopropyl alcohol or ethyl alcohol that are denatured. Isopropyl alcohol is cheaper and gets one intoxicated faster, but it irritates the digestive tract."
Kaushani said, “The grade of ethyl alcohol used in sanitisers is mostly denatured, i.e., it is tweaked with methanol and methyl alcohol, which is harmful. Hence, regular consumption of sanitiser as a substitute for regular alcohol can prove to be fatal.”
As illegal sanitiser companies mushroom in Telangana amid the pandemic, the state government has made it mandatory to obtain several licences. But many manufacturing units, already in operation, seem to have not obtained these clearances. According to Principal Secretary of Industries, Jayesh Ranjan, “Companies will require a PESO licence for storing ethanol and a manufacturing licence from the Commissioner of Industries.
"Consent for Establishment and Consent for Operation has to be obtained from the Pollution Control Board, along with a manufacturing-cum-marketing licence from the Drug Control Administration.”
Police have seized illegal sanitiser worth crores in the Hyderabad, Cyberabad and Rachakonda Commissionerate limits. So far, they have seized sanitiser worth Rs 3 crore. Deputy Commissioner of Police, Task Force, Hyderabad city P Radha Kishan Rao said they noticed that a number of companies were involved in making hand sanitisers. “We are taking action against such companies,” the DCP said.