Water in most areas of Ghaziabad found unfit for consumption

A test carried out to judge the quality of drinking water in the city found 700 samples out of the 1,000 collected unfit for human consumption. The scheduled testing was conducted by a team from the Ghaziabad municipal corporation and the district health department.

A test carried out to judge the quality of drinking water in the city found 700 samples out of the 1,000 collected unfit for human consumption. The scheduled testing was conducted by a team from the Ghaziabad municipal corporation and the district health department.

Water samples from schools, hospitals and even some restaurants failed to make the cut. (Representative photo)

A team comprising a junior engineer from the corporation and an advisor from the health department carried out the water sampling drive around the city. Many of the drinking water samples found unfit were taken from schools, hospitals, and restaurants.

Meanwhile, places like Indirapuram and Kaushambi successfully passed water sampling tests with almost 99% of the samples taken from these areas found to be chlorinated. The test deemed the water fit for human consumption if presence of chlorine was detected in the samples. Chlorine, a disinfectant, is commonly used in urban areas to kill germs in water.

“The tests are carried out to identify whether the drinking water is chlorinated or not. Overhead tanks need to be chlorinated every day as water starts getting contaminated after 24 hours without chlorination. However, some schools, hospitals and even restaurants have failed the test,” said GR Mishra, district malaria officer of Ghaziabad.

Some private hospitals in Nehru Nagar and Kavi Nagar, two schools in Lohia Nagar, and some prominent restaurants in Raj Nagar and Naya Ganj areas have failed the test. According to Mishra, samples from a number of popular restaurants in the city were found to be unfit for consumption last year. However, the situation has improved after repeated notices.

The water sampling drive is carried out when the Ganga water supply is suspended as that is the time that people use borewells, increasing the chances of contaminated water making its way into their homes.

“The process involves checking of water samples from two places - the source and the end point. Even if the water in the corporation’s overhead tank is found chlorinated and fit for drinking, the end point, that is water from household taps, is also checked to eliminate any chances of contamination like sewage water leaking into drinking water in underground pipes,” said Mishra.

The health department issues notices to places whose samples fail the test. According to officials from the water works department, a majority of the samples failing the test were taken from personal sources.