GS-II: No harmful chemicals in PET bottles, finds CSIR study

Context

• PET bottles are safe, a comprehensive evaluation by the CSIR-Central Food Technological Research Institute, Mysore has determined.
• For years there’s been a swirling debate internationally on whether PET (Polyethylene Terephthalate) bottles, which are the mainstay of plastic bottles, leach harmful chemicals when exposed to high temperatures.

About PET

• PET is short for polyethene terephthalate, the chemical name for polyester.
• PET is a clear, strong, and lightweight plastic that is widely used for packaging foods and beverages, especially convenience-sized soft drinks, juices and water.
• It is also popular for packaging salad dressings, peanut butter, cooking oils, mouthwash, shampoo, liquid hand soap, window cleaner, and even tennis balls.
• Special grades of PET are used for carry-home food containers and prepared food trays that can be warmed in the oven or microwave.
• The basic building blocks of PET are ethylene glycol and terephthalic acid, which are combined to form a polymer chain.

Toxins are below detection limits (BDL)

• The CFRTI analysis, commissioned by an industry body, concluded that antimony, arsenic, barium, cadmium, chromium, cobalt, lead, mercury, selenium and zinc “were below” their detection limits (BDL) of 0.001 mg/kg.
• Along with metals, the scientists also measured terephthalic acid, Isophthalic acid, Ethylene Glycol, BPA (bisphenol A) and phthalates.
• Bisphenol-A (a synthetic organic compound used in the manufacture of PET bottles) was below its detection limit of 0.02 mg/kg.
• BPA is now phased out after research found a link between the presence of BPA and the disruption of hormone regulation, as well as breast cancer.
• The CFTRI scientists found that the presence of metals, BPA and phthalates were “below detection limit”.

Compliant with global standards

• The analysis found that no chemicals breached the EU-specified norms.
• The reports were also below the EU regulation norms of the “specific migration limit”, which is the maximum amount of a substance that can migrate from a food packaging material or food container into food.

Safe for packaged water

• The studies further confirmed that antimony does not leach out of PET bottles.
• These findings further establish that no endocrine disruption happens from the use of PET bottles.
• The scientists also studied water stored in PET bottles and checked whether it affected the hormone levels of rats and mice.
• The evaluation found that the experimental male and female rats exhibited comparable blood hormone levels in both cases.
• This conclusively proved that PET bottles did not cause any Endocrine Disruption activity if used to package water.

GS-III: ‘Panchamirtham’ of Palani temple gets GI tag

News

The famous Palani panchamirtham, given as ‘prasadam’ at the Murugan temple at Palani has been granted the Geographical Indication (GI) tag.This is the first time a temple ‘prasadam’ from Tamil Nadu has been given the GI tag.

About the Panchamirtham

• It is sweet in taste and one of the main offerings for Lord Dhandayuthapani Swamy, the presiding deity of Arulmigu Dhandayuthapani Swamy Temple, situated on Palani Hills.
• The panchamirtham is a combination of five natural substances — banana, jaggery, cow ghee, honey and cardamom.
• Dates and diamond sugar candies are added for flavour.
• The panchamirtham is an ‘abhishega prasadam’ (food that is a religious offering), which is served in a semi-solid state.
• Not even a single drop of water is added during the preparation of the panchamirtham.
• This gives it its classic semi-solid consistency and taste. No preservatives or artificial ingredients are used.

What’s special with it?

• The whole process of producing the panchamirtham is automated. It is doubly ensured that the hygienic aspects are maintained.
• Devotees who visit the temple are offered the panchamirtham as a prasadam in the hill temple as well as in stalls run by temple administration at Adivaram.
• It is believed that the panchamirtham cures diseases of devotees.

About the region

• GI application, the geographical area for the production of panchamirtham is Palani town in Dindigul district, Tamil Nadu. It lies within latitude of 10.44 ° and longitude of 77.52 °.
• According to the GI application filed, the Palani panchamirtham is prepared under the guidance given by the CFTRI (Central Food Technological Research Institute) Mysore, a government of India undertaking.

GS-III: RBI issues final norms for regulatory box

News

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has issued the final framework for the regulatory sandbox in order to enable innovations in financial technology.

Regulatory Sandbox

• A regulatory sandbox usually refers to live testing of new products or services in a controlled regulatory environment for which regulators may permit certain regulatory relaxations for the limited purpose of the testing.
• The objective of the sandbox is to foster responsible innovation in financial services, promote efficiency and bring benefit to consumers.
• It provides a secure environment for fintech firms to experiment with products under the supervision of a regulator.
• It is an infrastructure that helps fintech players live to test their products or solutions, before getting the necessary regulatory approvals for a mass launch, saving start-ups time and cost.
• The concept of a regulatory sandbox or innovation hub for fintech firms was mooted by a committee headed by then RBI executive director Sudarshan Sen.
• The panel submitted its report in Nov 2017 has called for a regulatory sandbox to help firms experiment with fintech solutions, where the consequences of failure can be contained and reasons for failure analysed.
• If the product appears to have the potential to be successful, it might be authorised and brought to the broader market more quickly.

What are the new RBI norms?

• RBI will launch the sandbox for entities that meet the criteria of a minimum net worth of 25 lakh as per their latest audited balance sheet.
• The entity should either be a company incorporated and registered in the country or a bank licensed to operate in India.
• While money transfer services, digital know-your-customer, financial inclusion and cyber security products are included, cryptocurrency, credit registry and credit information have been left out.

Meeting norms on customer privacy, data protection, security and access to payment data, the security of transactions, KYC, and anti-money laundering will be mandatory.