hoodwink the cleaning of waste. This hoodwinking was also evident during the
Yatra when non-functional STPs were reported as functional.
21
In Bihar, Ganga and its tributaries such as Punpun, Ghagra, Gandak and Kosi
cover major agricultural areas of Bihar. Scientific evidence indicates that due to the
presence of bacteriophages in the river water, the wastes would remain normal and
healthy for long durations of time. This unfortunately has changed due to river
pollution caused by agricultural industrial wastewater and sewage that flows into
the river. In a study, 34 samples collected from where the river enters the state
(Chausa) and where it leaves the state (Bhagalpur) reveal that the river contains
extremely high levels of fecal coliform which has also made the water alkaline. The
study confirmed that in addition to industrial pollution, fecal coliform also contributes for almost 50% of the contamination in the Ganga water.
22
6 Groundwater Contamination
Groundwater is a critical source of drinking water, especially in rural India. During
the 1980s–1990s, over-extraction resulted in depletion of groundwater. What was
more disturbing was that by then, 80% of drinking water sources were
groundwater-dependent. As a result, habitations and villages that were covered with
a safe water supply by the government started slipping back.
Water quality also started becoming a problem, and drinking water problems
began to emerge in new areas. The problems were chemical in nature, best pointed
out in the case of West Bengal. Endowed with 1650 mm of rainfall and several
rivers, West Bengal was earlier using surface water and shallow ponds as drinking
water sources. As the state shifted to groundwater sources, reports of arsenic
contamination began coming in from the right bank of the Ganga. Similarly,
over-extraction of groundwater has also resulted in increase in fluoride concentration in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya
Pradesh and Rajasthan.
Other contaminants include excess iron, nitrates and brackishness, the latter
especially in coastal areas. Increase in brackishness in coastal areas has been the
result of groundwater extraction through deep tube wells for drinking and irrigation
purposes, leading to salinity ingress where seawater seeps in. The occurrence of
inland salinity is due to over-extraction of groundwater and less recharge of
aquifers.
Thus, the problems that emerged from groundwater use were not limited to
depleting sources, but also contaminants that did not need to be dealt with before.
21
Indira Khurana, November 2019. https://www.indiawaterreview.in/Story/GuestColumns/timeto-rebuild-gangahuman-relationship-that-looks-beyond-economic-gains/2429/5. Last accessed on
April 01, 2020.
22
Ghosh and Kumar (2020).
82
I. Khurana and R. Sen
Yatra when non-functional STPs were reported as functional.
21
In Bihar, Ganga and its tributaries such as Punpun, Ghagra, Gandak and Kosi
cover major agricultural areas of Bihar. Scientific evidence indicates that due to the
presence of bacteriophages in the river water, the wastes would remain normal and
healthy for long durations of time. This unfortunately has changed due to river
pollution caused by agricultural industrial wastewater and sewage that flows into
the river. In a study, 34 samples collected from where the river enters the state
(Chausa) and where it leaves the state (Bhagalpur) reveal that the river contains
extremely high levels of fecal coliform which has also made the water alkaline. The
study confirmed that in addition to industrial pollution, fecal coliform also contributes for almost 50% of the contamination in the Ganga water.
22
6 Groundwater Contamination
Groundwater is a critical source of drinking water, especially in rural India. During
the 1980s–1990s, over-extraction resulted in depletion of groundwater. What was
more disturbing was that by then, 80% of drinking water sources were
groundwater-dependent. As a result, habitations and villages that were covered with
a safe water supply by the government started slipping back.
Water quality also started becoming a problem, and drinking water problems
began to emerge in new areas. The problems were chemical in nature, best pointed
out in the case of West Bengal. Endowed with 1650 mm of rainfall and several
rivers, West Bengal was earlier using surface water and shallow ponds as drinking
water sources. As the state shifted to groundwater sources, reports of arsenic
contamination began coming in from the right bank of the Ganga. Similarly,
over-extraction of groundwater has also resulted in increase in fluoride concentration in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya
Pradesh and Rajasthan.
Other contaminants include excess iron, nitrates and brackishness, the latter
especially in coastal areas. Increase in brackishness in coastal areas has been the
result of groundwater extraction through deep tube wells for drinking and irrigation
purposes, leading to salinity ingress where seawater seeps in. The occurrence of
inland salinity is due to over-extraction of groundwater and less recharge of
aquifers.
Thus, the problems that emerged from groundwater use were not limited to
depleting sources, but also contaminants that did not need to be dealt with before.
21
Indira Khurana, November 2019. https://www.indiawaterreview.in/Story/GuestColumns/timeto-rebuild-gangahuman-relationship-that-looks-beyond-economic-gains/2429/5. Last accessed on
April 01, 2020.
22
Ghosh and Kumar (2020).
82
I. Khurana and R. Sen