BHASKAR BARUAH Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Heard Mr. Bhaskar Barua, petitioner in person and also Mr. D. Saikia, learned senior counsel appearing for the authorities under the State of Assam and Mr. S.C Keyal, learned ASGI for the authorities under the Union of India.

(2.) The petitioner, who is a practicing Advocate in the Gauhati High Court, has preferred this Public Interest Litigation (PIL) raising concern about the fruits being sold in the market, which are ripened by following an artificial process of using a chemical which is calcium carbide. It is stated that the fruits are being plucked from the trees before they ripen at a pre-matured stage. By doing so, it facilitates the traders to transport the un-ripened fruits to its final market destination in a better condition as otherwise there arises the possibility of the fruits getting ripened fast and getting rotten, if it does not reach the market in time or if it could not be sold off at a proper time.

(3.) To devise a method to come out of it, the fruits are being plucked in an un-ripened condition at a pre-matured stage and then transported to the market destination. Thereafter, they are subjected to a process i.e., by keeping it above a collection of the chemical calcium carbide, which releases some gas and the gas in turn, makes the fruits ripened quickly. When the fruits get ripened in the above process, they are being sold in the market for its final consumption. It being a health concern, the present PIL has been preferred mainly on the ground that the fruits, which are being ripened in an artificial manner by use of calcium carbide has its own detrimental effects on the fruits which is retained even after it is ripened and when the fruits, which are ripened in the said manner are consumed by the people, the ill-effects of the chemical calcium carbides adversely affects their health. It is stated that several scientific reports are available which reveals that serious diseases like cancer, etc., are caused because of consumption of the artificially ripened fruits by using calcium carbide. It is stated that the method of artificially ripening fruits by using calcium carbide prevailing all over has reached a menacing proportion and it is now difficult to find fruits in the market, which are not subjected to such artificial ripening process.