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Arsenic contaminated vegetables in parts of Bihar: Government tells assembly
The Bihar government informed the assembly that it is initiating measures to deal with the problem of arsenic in groundwater.
The Bihar government on Thursday informed the assembly that it is initiating measures to deal with the problem of arsenic in groundwater in several parts of the state, PTI reported.
Bihar deputy chief minister Vijay Kumar Sinha said that the use of arsenic-contaminated groundwater has caused concentration of arsenic in vegetables in certain districts in the state.
Sinha, who also holds the agriculture portfolio, said a high-level meeting of the departments concerned has been called to assess the situation.
The matter is also being discussed with the officials of the public health and engineering , health and minor water resources departments, he said.
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"The use of arsenic contaminated groundwater has caused concentration of arsenic in leafy vegetables, root vegetables including potatoes and other agricultural produces in certain districts in the state," Sinha told the Assembly while replying to a question raised during Question Hour, according to PTI.
Sinha said that arsenic concentration has been found 0.1 mg per kg in leafy vegetables, 0.3 mg/per kg in root vegetables, including potatoes and 1.0 mg per kg in paddy crops.
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Earlier, the Bihar Economic Survey had also highlighted the presence of arsenic in groundwater beyond permissible limits in 4,709 rural wards, fluoride in 3,789 wards and iron in 21,709 wards.
"We are aware of the fact ... .sensing the gravity of the situation, the state government has decided to make rural Bihar 'hand pump-free' and provide safe drinking water to people in the rural areas of the state under the 'Har Ghar Nal ka Jal' scheme'. All rural areas in Bihar will soon be made 'hand pump-free'," Bihar PHED minister Niraj Kumar Singh had told PTI earlier.
