Two bodies, same tests, two results

Is your drinking water safe? Hard to decide if one goes by what the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) and the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) have to say. Both agencies reportedly tested the same set of water samples but came out with different results.

Is your drinking water safe? Hard to decide if one goes by what the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) and the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) have to say.

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Both agencies reportedly tested the same set of water samples but came out with different results. While the MCD claimed said 15 per cent of the water tested was unfit for consumption, the DJB allegedly found most of the samples to be okay.

The MCD tested around 765 samples on June 12, 2009, in all its 12 zones and found 675 of them to be fit for drinking.

Around 90 were unfit for consumption.

The Delhi Jal Board (DJB), during the same period, tested 411 samples across Delhi and found only three unfit for drinking in Sadar Paharganj zone.

The civic body claimed that since the Delhi government was unable to provide safe drinking water to Delhiites, Sheila Dikshit — who is also the chairperson of the DJB — should resign.

“It is the MCD’s prerogative to test water every week. We found around 15 per cent of the samples collected contaminated.

DJB is trying to cover up the issue by carrying out testing of its own,” said BJP councillor Vijendra Gupta.

According to Gupta, the number of samples found unfit on June 5 were 52, pointing to an increase in contamination of water.
DJB sources however denied any joint testing with the MCD and said they not informed about the results of the tests done by the municipal body.