Bottled water: CAA steps up raids over overpricing
Fines range from Rs. 100,000 to Rs. 5 mnMRP also applies to hotels, tourist establishments Valaichchenai restaurant fined Rs. 750,000
The Consumer Affairs Authority (CAA) has intensified islandwide raids against businesses selling plastic bottled drinking water above the stipulated Maximum Retail Price (MRP), warning that offenders could face court-imposed fines ranging from Rs. 100,000 to Rs. 5 million.A senior CAA official told The Sunday Morning that enforcement operations were underway across the country, with the authority conducting raids and instituting legal action against businesses violating the gazette price ceilings.“We are conducting raids and filing cases. We are also raising awareness,” the official said.
According to the official, penalties vary depending on the type of business involved. A sole proprietorship found violating the stipulated price could face a minimum fine of Rs. 100,000, while the minimum fine applicable to a private limited company is Rs. 500,000. Corporate entities could face penalties of up to Rs. 5 million.The official also clarified that hotels and tourist establishments, including high-end hotels, were not exempt from the gazetted MRP for plastic bottled drinking water.Accordingly, establishments selling such bottled water are required to comply with the stipulated MRP irrespective of the type or category of business.The CAA said that enforcement action had already been taken against establishments in several parts of the country, including restaurants in Haputale, Batticaloa, Jaffna, and Colombo; a bakery in Angunakolapelessa; tourist hotels in Ella and Matara; and a mobile railway canteen operating on the Kankesanthurai-Colombo route.
In one of the latest cases, a restaurant in Valaichchenai was fined Rs. 750,000 on Thursday (10) for selling a one-litre bottle of drinking water for Rs. 130 despite its prescribed MRP being Rs. 100.CAA officers had detected the violation during a raid conducted on 4 June. When the case was taken up before the Valaichchenai Magistrate’s Court on Thursday, the establishment pleaded guilty to the charge, following which the court imposed a fine of Rs. 750,000.The CAA urged consumers to report establishments selling plastic bottled drinking water above the stipulated MRP, stressing that compliance with the gazette price ceiling was mandatory.
