With the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) announcing significant alterations in its method to establish the purity of packaged drinking water, a number of questions arise. For instance, why was it left to an independent body like the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) to conduct tests to ascertain the safety of bottled drinking water? After all, was it not the responsibility of the BIS to set clear and unambiguous standards for a product that has become virtually one of mass consumption in towns and cities? The regulatory body left certain yardsticks vague by not stating categorically that pesticides should "not be present" and specifying only that they ought to be "absent" in bottled water...editorial