After repeated tests, fisheries department officials in Aizawl found no carcinogenic substance in imported fishes, but officials from Lawngtlai on Friday detected formalin used in the preservation of fishes.
Alarm bells rang in Mizoram when formalin was detected in imported fishes in Meghalaya. Several tests were conducted in Aizawl and other district headquarters, but officials said presence of the harmful preservative was null.
Formalin, a harmful preservative was detected in fishes sold at the main market in southernmost Mizoram’s Lawngtlai town, Fisheries Department officials said.
Joint Director of Food and Drugs Administration (FDA), Department of Health Lalsawma said that they learned about the presence of formalin in the fishes in Lawngtlai through social media and had not been informed about the findings officially.
Earlier, the state Forensic Science Laboratory officials had detected formalin in the fishes sold in Aizawl market in July while the FDA, which later tested several samples, failed to find any traces of the chemical. Sale of fish had picked up again in Aizawl markets after the findings of the FDA proved inconclusive.
In July, Meghalaya government imposed ban on import of fishes for 15 days, after samples of fishes tested positive for the presence of carcinogenic substance formalin. The ban was later extended by another 15 days.