The High Court today asked the Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institution (BSTI) what steps the latter has taken following two test reports on milk prepared by Dhaka University researchers.
The bench of Justice Syed Rifaat Ahmed and Justice Md Iqbal Kabir Lytton passed the order on Sunday while hearing a writ petition relating to seeking necessary orders to test the pasteurised milk.
The court also asked the BSTI to tell the former how much time the latter would need to develop its own laboratory and establish parameters to detect antibiotics in the milk.
As ordered by the court, local media reports say, a BSTI lawyer, barrister Sarkar MR Hassan is supposed to talk to the authorities concerned and informing it by 2:00pm today.
The court said that after receiving the wanted details from the BSTI it would pass all necessary orders on the issue later in the day.
Earlier on Saturday again, researchers claimed to have found traces of antibiotics in 10 samples of pasteurised and unpasteurised milk produced by several companies.
Ten samples - seven pasteurised and three unpasteurised - were again tested last week, said a press release signed by Prof ABM Faruque, former director of Dhaka University's Biomedical Research Centre.
Pasteurised products of Pran, Milk Vita, Igloo, Aarong, and Farm Fresh were tested, the statement released on Saturday said.
New tests found four antibiotics in three samples, three antibiotics in six samples and two in one samples.
On June 25, researchers announced finding traces of detergent and antibiotics in samples of pasteurised and unpasteurised milk of Pran, MilK Vita, Igloo, Aarong, and Farm Fresh.
All seven samples of pasteurised milk contained antibiotics used to treat humans, Prof Faruque had said. Detergent was detected in three samples of pasteurised and an unpasteurised one.