- Viral WhatsApp message says cow urine is available in a supermarket in Dubai
- It is not legal to sell cow urine in the country and actions could be taken against those found selling cow urine
- WhatsApp message had a photo showing plastic bottles with Gomutra (cow urine) written on it
- Voice recording along with photo says "Arabs might not understand what Gomutra is and might drink it"
A viral WhatsApp message prompted the Food Safety Department in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, to inspect several stores and warehouses of a prominent supermarket chain. The WhatsApp message said that the supermarket is selling cow urine.
The Food Safety Department officers Wednesday inspected stores but couldn't find any evidence of the supermarket selling special "Indian drink" cow urine, which is illegal in the country, Gulf News quoted an official as saying.
The official also confirmed that the viral WhatsApp message was fake.
"We sent a team to the supermarket chain's stores in Deira and Bur Dubai plus their main warehouse. We did not find the item listed in their import records, so the WhatsApp message was incorrect," the publication quoted Iman Al Bastaki, director of the Food Safety Department, as saying.
Bastaki said they inspected the stores after they received a message on WhatsApp. The team also checked the import records but couldn't find anything.
The viral message had a photo that showed plastic bottles with Gomutra (cow urine) written on it displayed on the shelf. There is also a voice recording in which a man is heard saying that "Arabs might not understand what Gomutra is and might drink it thinking it is a special Indian drink," the publication reported.
The supermarket's spokesperson confirmed that they have never sold this product.
Cow urine is considered as a health-giving drink and is used for therapeutic purposes in India. However, in Dubai, it is illegal to sell cow urine. Bastaki said that legal action can be taken against people, who are found selling cow urine in the country.
Gomutra or Cow urine in India
In 2016, researchers at Lucknow-based Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) said that cow urine can help in the treatment of cancer and other infections.
"Cow urine distillate was found to possess the property of bio-enhancement of an anti-cancer natural agent 'Taxol' (paclitaxel) which is produced in microscopic amounts by the Yew tree (Taxus spp.). Cow urine distillate, besides enhancing the killing activities of different antibiotics on bacteria, could also enhance the cell division inhibitory activity of paclitaxel against the breast cancer cell line MCF-7," Shripad Yesso Naik, minister of state for AYUSH (Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha, and Homoeopathy) said in 2016.
India's obsession with cow urine doesn't stop here. In some rural areas, people drink cow urine because they believe it keeps them disease free. They also apply it on their face and wash hands with it.
"I was suffering from acute lung diseases and would catch a cough and cold regularly. I even had acne and pimples on my skin but once I started applying urine, my face was crystal clear in just a week," Express.co.uk quoted Hemant Paliwal, a resident of India's northern state Rajasthan, as saying.
"Since then, there hasn't been a single day when I haven't drunk cow urine."
