Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) generates ground water quality data of the country on a regional scale as part of its ground water quality monitoring program and various scientific studies. These studies indicate the occurrence of arsenic in ground water beyond permissible limits (as per BIS) for human consumption in isolated pockets in various States / UTs including West Bengal, Jharkhand, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Assam, Manipur and Chhattisgarh.
The details of partly affected districts with arsenic contaminants beyond permissible limits in ground water of West Bengal, Jharkhand, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Assam, Manipur and Chhattisgarh are given in Annexure-I. Specific information on arsenic affected population is not readily available.
Water being a State subject, initiatives on water quality is primarily States’ responsibility; however, various steps have been taken by the Central Government for providing contamination free water in the country.
This Information was given by the Minister of State for Jal Shakti, ShriBishweswarTuduin a written reply in LokSabha today.
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Annexure-I
Details of Partly Affected Districts with Arsenic Contaminants in Ground Water of Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Manipur, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.
| S. No. | State/UTs | Arsenic (above 0.01 mg/l) |
| 1 | Assam | Sivsagar, Jorhat, Golaghat, Sonitpur, Lakhimpur, Dhemaji, Hailakandi, Karimganj, Cachar, Barpeta, Bongaigaon, Goalpara, Dhubri, Nalbari, Nagaon, Morigaon, Kamrup, Darrang&Baksha. |
| 2 | Bihar | Begusarai, Bhagalpur, Bhojpur, Buxar, Darbhanga, Katihar, Khagaria, Kishanganj, Lakhisarai, Munger, Patna, Purnea, Godda, Dhanbad, Samastipur, Saran, Vaishali, East Champaran, Gopalganj, Madhepura, Muzaffarpur, Saharsa, Siwan, West Champaran. |
| 3 | Chhattisgarh | Rajnandgon. |
| 4 | Jharkhand | Sahebganj, Lohardaga. |
| 5 | Manipur | Bishnupur, Thoubal. |
| 6 | Uttar Pradesh | Bahraich, Balia, Balrampur, Bareilly, Basti, Bijnor, Chandauli, Ghazipur, Gonda, Gorakhpur, LakhimpurKheri, Meerut, Mirzapur, Muradabad, Rai Bareilly, SantKabir Nagar, Shajahanpur, Siddarthnagar, SantRavidas Nagar, Unnao, Azamgarh, Badaun, Deoria, Jhansi, Kausambi, Kushinagar, Pilibhit, MaunathBhanjan. |
| 7 | West Bengal | Bardhaman, Hooghly, Howrah, Malda, Murshidabad, Nadia, North-24 Parganas, South-24 Parganas, Coochbehar. |
Government of India in partnership with States, is implementing JalJeevan Mission (JJM) since August, 2019 to provide potable tap water supply of prescribed quality to every rural household in the country by 2024. Under JJM, while planning water supply schemes to provide tap water supply to house-holds, priority is given to quality-affected habitations. While allocating the funds to States/ UTs in a particular financial year, 10% weightage is given to the population residing in habitations affected by chemical contaminants including arsenic and fluoride, as on 31st March of the preceding financial year.
Since, planning, implementation and commissioning of piped water supply schemes based on a safe water source may take time, purely as an interim measure, States/ UTs have been advised to install community water purification plants (CWPPs) in such habitations, to provide potable water to every household at the rate of 8–10 litre per capita per day (lpcd) to meet their drinking and cooking requirements.
Department of Drinking Water & Sanitation had launched a National Water Quality Sub-Mission (NWQSM) on 22nd March, 2017 as a part of National Rural Drinking Water Programme (NRDWP), which has now been subsumed under JJM, to provide safe drinking water to 27,544 arsenic/fluoride affected rural habitations in the country.
Under Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) launched on 25th June, 2015 in selected 500 cities of the country with focus on development of urban infrastructure in various sectors including water supply, States/UTs have the option to take projects on special water supply arrangements for difficult areas, hill and coastal cities, including those having water quality problems.
CGWB has constructed arsenic safe exploratory wells in West Bengal, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh by using innovative cement sealing technique. 510 such wells in this regard have been constructed by CGWB, including 40 in Bihar, 185 in West Bengal and 285 in Uttar Pradesh and handed over to concerned States for use. Further, CGWB is providing technical assistance to the States for implementing cement sealing technology in Gangetic flood plains.
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