Ground Water Quality
With fast growth in population and economy in the Ganga Basin the
water use has intensified many fold. With highly uneven distribution of rainfall
in the basin, it is experiencing severe water scarcity in many parts. Basin's
groundwater is over-abstracted leading to lowering of water table at alarming
rate which resulted in reducing the flows of most of the tributaries of the
Ganga. With fast urbanization and increasing prosperity the wastewater is
steeply increasing. Due to paucity of resources the urban local bodies, which
are responsible for management of this wastewater, are not able to do so. Thus,
a large part of this wastewater is getting into the river Ganga or its
tributaries either untreated or partially treated. Reduced level of water flow
coupled with increased waste loads pose serious water quality problems in the
river. Although, access to drinking water has increased over the past decade due
to large number of efforts by the government, still the tremendous adverse
impact of unsafe water on health continues. The highest mortality from diarrhoea
is said to be among children under the age of five, highlighting an urgent need
for focused interventions to prevent and control water quality degradation to
avoid diarrhoeal disease. The water quality monitoring results indicated that
pathogenic pollution caused by discharge of untreated or partially treated
domestic wastewater is the main cause of water quality degradation in the Ganga
river. Most of the tributaries of the Ganga and many groundwater sources are
affected by such pollution. Apart from pathogenic pollution organic pollution
causing oxygen depletion was observed in many stretches of the Ganga and its
tributaries. Nutrient enrichment followed by eutrophication is observed in some
stretches of the Ganga and its tributaries. Toxic pollution is observed in some
pockets of the river or its tributaries, where industries are concentrating. Due
to lack of proper transport facilities (sewerage system) for the wastewater in
the basin both for domestic and industrial wastewater, a large part of it is
percolating in the ground and polluting the groundwater. Such pollution is
evident in large urban and industrial areas. The over-exploitation of
groundwater in many parts of the basin led to geogenic contamination by
underground minerals. Fluorides, iron, arsenic, salinity and hardness is found
to be increasing in many parts of the basin.
State wise details of
contamination of ground water in some areas of the districts
Pollutant
|
State
|
Place of occurrences
|
Salinity (Inland)
|
Bihar
|
Begusarai
|
Delhi
|
Najafgarh, Kanjhawala, and Mehrauli Blocks
|
Haryana
|
Karnal, Sonepat, Rohtak, Hissar, Sirsa, Faridabad, Jind, Gurgaon,
Bhiwani, Mahendragarh
|
Madhya Pradesh
|
Gwalior, Bhind, Morena, Jhabua, Khargaon, Dhar, Shivpuri, Shajapur, Guna, Mandsor, Ujjain
|
Uttar Pradesh
|
Agra,
Mathura, Mainpuri, Banda
|
Salinity (Coastal) |
West Bengal |
Haldia and 24
Parganas |
Flouride |
Haryana |
Hissar, Kaithal, Gurgaon, Rohtak, Jind, Bhiwani, Mahendragarh, Faridabad
|
Madhya Pradesh |
Bhind, Moerana, Guna, Jhabua, Chhindwara, Seoni, Mandla, Raipur, Vidisha
|
Uttar Pradesh |
Bulandshahar, Unnao,
Agra,
Aligarh,
Mathura,
Ghaziabad,
Meerut, and Rai
Bareilly
|
West Bengal
|
Birbhum
|
Iron |
Uttar Pradesh
|
Mirjapur
|
Bihar
|
East Champaran, Muzaffarpur, Gaya, Mungher, Deoghar & Madubani, Patna,
Palamau, Nalanda, Nawada, Banka
|
West Bengal
|
Midnapur,
Howrah, Hoogly and Bankura
|
Manganese |
Uttar Pradesh
|
Moradabad, Basti,
Rampur,
Unnao |
Arsenic
|
West Bengal
|
Malda, Murshidabad, Nadia, Malda, South-24 Paraganas, Hoogly, Bardhaman,
Howrah
|
Nitrate |
Bihar
|
Patna, East Champaran, Gaya, Nalanda,
Nawada, Banka, and Bhagalpur
|
Delhi
|
Naraina, Shahadara (Blocks)
|
Haryana
|
Ambala, Sonepat, Jind, Gurgaon, Faridabad, Hissar, Sirsa, Karnal,
Kurukshetra, Rohtak, Bhiwani, Mahendragarh
|
Himachal
Pradesh
|
Kulu, Solan,
Una
|
Uttar
Pradesh
|
Orai, Jhansi, Lalitpur, Faizabad, Sultanpur, Maharajganj, Gorakhapur, Deoria
|
Madhya Pradesh
|
Sehore,
Bhopal, and West & Central part of state
|
Rajasthan
|
Jaipur, Churu, Ganganagar, Bikaner, Jalore, Barmer, Bundi, and Sawaimadhopur
|
West Bengal
|
Midnapur,
Howrah, Uttar Dinajpur, Malda, Birbhum, Murshidabad, Nadia, Bankura and
Purulia
|
Delhi
|
Shahadara and Mehrauli Blocks
|
Chloride |
Madhya Pradesh
|
Bhind, Shajapur
and
Sehore
|
|
West Bengal
|
Digha,
Haldia
|
Zinc |
Delhi |
R.K.
Puram |
Heavy Metals |
Bihar
|
Dhanbad, Muzaffarpur,
Begusarai
|
Haryana
|
Faridabad
|
Himachal Pradesh
|
Purwanoo,
Kalaamb
|
Madhya Pradesh
|
Bastar, Korba, Ratlam, Nagda
|
Uttar Pradesh
|
Singrauli, Basti, Kanpur, Jaunpur, Allahabad, Saharanpur, Aligarh
|
West Bengal
|
Durgapur,
Howrah, Murshidabad,
Nadia
|
Delhi
|
Alipur, Kanjhawala, Najafgarh, Mehrauli, and Shahdara Blocks
|
The Central Pollution Control
Board undertook a major groundwater quality survey and the report published in
1995 identified about 20 locations in various states of India
as critical sites of ground water pollution. CPCB found that industrial
effluents are the primary reason for ground water pollution. In the industrial
and urban fringe zones of cities, sub-soil water has already been polluted by
industries which release highly toxic substances. The wells in many residential
areas are contaminated with nitrate and detergents.
Results of Chemical Analysis
Carried by CPCB
Area
|
Industrial Activities
|
Ground Water Quality
Problem
|
Durgapur
(West
Bengal)
|
Coal field
|
Heavy metals except Cu
exceeded the desirable limit. Hg was also reported as high as 9.5 mg/l. Phenolic compounds were in traces. Total pesticides
levels have violated the desirable limit.
|
Howrah
(West
Bengal)
|
Foundries, Electroplating
& other mechanical type
|
Heavy metals viz, Pb, Cd,
Cr were very high and Zn, Cu, were within limit. Hg was also present Fe &
Mn were also very high, CN & Phenolic compounds in traces. EC, Cl,
TDS were some time very high. Pesticides were also on high side.
|
Ratlam, Nagda
(Madhya Pradesh)
|
Distillery Dye
(intermediates) Pharmaceutical (intermediates)
|
TDS, TH, Hg, Pb were on higher side considerable amounts of pesticides
were also reported. Fecal Coliforms were also
present particularly at Nagda.
|
Korba (Chhattisgarh)
|
Thermal power plants,
ancillary units, Aluminum industries, mining
|
The presence of Cd, Fe, Cr & Cu has exceeded
the presented limits, Pesticides were also present. Coliform,
F, TDS, B & phenolic compounds also exceeded
the standards.
|
Singrauli
(Uttar Pradesh)
|
Thermal Power Plants,
aluminum Plants, organic chemicals industries and other subsidiary units with
Carbon plants, caustic soda and pesticides
|
Fe, Cr & Cu were
present in predominance. Presence of high Aldrine, Dieldrin & Lindane levels
were also observed. Beside this F, Ca, Mg, B, Coliforms,
Phenols exceeded the prescribed limit.
|
Najafgarh
(Delhi)
|
Insecticides, Caustic Soda,
Vanaspati, Electroplating etc.
|
EC, TDS both exceeded tin
drinking water standards. Coliform, F, NO3
were found significantly in higher values. Fe & Cr were in levels
exceeding standards limit.
|
(Source : Central Pollution Control
Board)
The details of ground water quality observations
in the basin are given here.
|