Kottayam: Could jackfruit cause a false alcohol reading on a breathalyzer? That’s what appeared to happen at a Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) depot in Pathanamthitta.
On Friday, a bus driver failed a routine breathalyzer test at the Pandalam KSRTC depot after consuming a large amount of jackfruit before starting his shift. According to an official, one of the drivers had brought a fresh batch of jackfruit from his home and shared it with colleagues. The driver in question had eaten a significant portion of the fruit.
As part of standard procedure, he underwent the breathalyzer test, only for the meter to register a surprising reading—jumping from 0 to 10 within seconds. The driver immediately denied being intoxicated and even requested a blood test to clear his name. To make matters more perplexing, three other staff members also failed the breathalyzer test.
In response, the authorities decided to examine the breathalyzer itself. An official responsible for conducting the test initially recorded a zero reading. However, after eating some jackfruit, his own breathalyzer test also showed a positive alcohol reading. This led to the discovery that jackfruit was likely the cause of the false positive result.
The authorities confirmed that the jackfruit had caused the breathalyzer to malfunction, leading to a surprising—and somewhat baffling—incident.
