A India factory used discarded masks as cotton to fill mattresses

Indian police have busted a mattress counterfeiting business in Maharashtra that used discarded masks instead of cotton, according to a 12-day report by India's New Delhi TV. The Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation is located in the Jalgaon region, about 400 kilometres northeast of Mumbai. Police chief Ghavari said, "They were filling mattresses with discarded masks when police officers reached the production floor."

 

Reports say a case has been registered against the owner of the company and police are looking for others involved in the case. Police also found piles of used masks at the site, which they burned in accordance with relevant laws.

New Delhi TV said the country was producing 15 million masks a day at the time of the outbreak in March last year. As production rises, discarded masks are placing a greater burden on India's already strained waste disposal system. Data from the country's Central Pollution Control Board shows that 18,000 tonnes of outbreak-related medical waste was generated in the country between June and September 2020.