Devotees flag dirty, low water level at Hindon river ghats

Officials of the UP Pollution Control Board said Hindon is classified under category ‘E ’, making it fit only for activities like irrigation, industrial cooling, and controlled waste disposal.

Ghaziabad: With Chhath Puja beginning on Friday, several devotees at a Hindon river ghat near GT Road flagged low, contaminated water levels, unfit for bathing or performing rituals.

The monitoring site is just upstream of the Chhath Ghat on GT Road, a major site for performing puja rituals. (Sakib Ali/HT PHOTO)

“The water is filthy. Leave apart bathing or performing rituals, it is not fit for even touching. We only hope more water is released so the impurities and filth wash away,” said Avneesh Kumar, a resident of Arthala, who was at the ghat on the first day of puja.

Echoing similar concerns, Pandit Rakesh Tiwari, national general secretary of the Purabiya Jan Kalyan Parishad, which organises festivities at the ghat, said polluted water flow is a recurring issue. “The water is filthy. We had to raise concerns with officials. The issue recurs every year as the canal is closed for annual maintenance during the festival season, and no regular flow is received in Hindon,” Tiwari added.

According to UPPCB’s latest September report, coliform concentration in Hindon is 310,000 most probable number (mpn)/100 ml at the monitoring station at Karhera near Mohan Nagar in Ghaziabad.

The monitoring site is just upstream of the Chhath Ghat on GT Road, a major site for performing puja rituals.

According to Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), the maximum permissible limit for fecal coliform in designated bathing water is 2,500 mpn/100 ml, with a desirable limit of 500 mpn/100 ml.

However, officials of the UP irrigation department said “ample water” was released into the river from Jani in Meerut, which receives water from the Upper Ganga Canal.

“Hindon has received ample water supply, and it is sufficient to meet the puja requirements. As the water flow continues, the stagnant dirt will wash away, and the water will be cleaner,” Raj Kumar Vern, executive engineer (construction division) from UP Irrigation Department, told HT.

Officials of the UP Pollution Control Board (UPPCB) said Hindon is classified under category ‘E ’, making it fit only for activities like irrigation, industrial cooling, and controlled waste disposal.

“Hindon quality is unfit for bathing. Coliforms make water contaminated. In addition, polluted water is received from upstream. However, we expect the flow to increase in a day or two, diluting the impurities,” said Ankit Kumar, regional officer of UPPCB at Ghaziabad.

UP Jal Nigam said maintenance of the Upper Ganga Canal was over and water was released from Haridwar on November 9.

“It is likely that the water will reach Ghaziabad in a day or two. However, the quantity of water is not much. We expect it to increase gradually. Once the flow increases, we will be able to run the Ganga water treatment plants normally,” Bhramanand, executive engineer of UP Jal Nigam, said.