16,000 mehndi cones seized in Tamil Nadu

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As many as 16,000 cones of mehndi of a particular brand were seized by sleuths of the directorate of drug control after an itch scare spread across hundreds of Muslim families of Tamil Nadu on Eid eve.

“Some women and girls who had kept the mehndi for hours for better result experienced the allergy.

The mehndi cones of the Singh’s brand had no manufacturing or expiry date, though it advised users to remove the mehndi one hour after applying it,” said an official.

Scores of young Muslim women and girls had thronged the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital and Royapettah Government Hospital late on Sunday evening with red, itchy palms after they suffered an allergic reaction to the mehndi they had applied.

Doctors said that patients complained about a burning sensation in their hands and feet after they applied mehndi.

Similar complaints were reported in Vellore, Salem and Krishnagiri.A sample of the mehndi was tested for possible toxic chemical content by the authorities.

According to sources at the King’s Institute, the test indicated that the brand of mehndi had no toxic content.

It is possible that people had added lime juice to it or kept it on more than the stipulated time, sources said.

The directorate of drug control, however, pointed that that they had seized a huge quantity of the mehndi cones because the brand failed to stick to packaging norms.

“There was no expiry or manufacturing date on the cone packs,” an official said, defending the action by the directorate of drug control.