Fact and Fake

 An old clip, re-circulated in social media, showing some unnamed and unidentified persons packing ‘plastic rice’ at a godown in Dimapur went viral especially as some in the media reported the alleged “scam”. The irksome report attracted unwanted attention. Though police doubted the entire matter, yet this had to be decided through a laboratory test. The team comprising of officials from the district administration, Food and Civil Supplies department, state branch of Food Safety and Standards Authority and Police went to the spot, collected samples of alleged plastic rice and sealed the godown. The samples were then sent for tests in the FSSA and after a few days, the reports confirmed that the news was fake but the rice was real. It is now up to the police to take action against those spreading fake news which sparked apprehensions and tension among public. Even before the laboratory were conducted, Dimapur Police held strong suspicions that there was motive behind the alleged scam. Police officers told this newspaper that the so-called scam fell apart on several grounds. First, making plastic granules to look like rice, required a more sophisticated machine and not those found at the godown. Secondly, ‘manufacturing’ plastic rice require basic raw materials such as Polypropylene and Polyethylene. These raw materials are expensive and thus, trying to sell the so called ‘plastic rice’ would be expensive and unaffordable for public. Thirdly and most important, plastic is not something that is digestable and it would eventually be exposed. Police also concluded, that the godown where the plastic rice was being manufactured, was in reality, a packing unit where high quality rice was mixed with inferior quality to be sold at huge profit in the market. On the issue of ‘plastic rice, the video clips were reportedly originated in China in 2010. It was said that plastic rice was mixed with real rice in order to trick consumers. Chinese social media, and showed workers feeding plastic waste into a machine, with the end result being white, rice-like granules. However, it later turned out that that at that time, the factory was merely producing plastic granules aimed for industrial use. rumours have persisted that plastic is being sold as rice, fuelled by videos which show people bouncing rice balls. However, a BBC report after investigation by its journalists concluded that rice, when prepared in the right way and squeezed into balls can actually bounce. The report also added that the natural characteristics of rice are carbohydrates and proteins and they can be made to bounce. However, there are four easy tests to confirm if a sample is plastic rice-1. On burning with matchsticks, plastic will emit smell; 2. If there is no fungus on leaving boiled rice in a bottle for two or three days; 3. If it melts when hot oil is poured into it;4 if the ‘rice’ floats on top when it is poured into a bottle and stirred. Now that the test result is out, police will have to identify and book those spreading fake news so that such persons are punished as per the law and also to act as deterrent against such persons who habitually and purposely create misgivings.