New Delhi: A parliamentary committee has, in its latest report, flagged the fact that as many as 48,969 rural habitations are affected by water contamination.
It has also noted with concern that despite this situation, the Department of Water Resource, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation was “silent” when it came to to action that needed to be taken to ensure clean drinking water reaches houses affected with contaminants.
The Standing Committee, chaired by Lok Sabha MP Sanjay Jaiswal, and comprising 20 other MPs of the Lok Sabha and eight of Rajya Sabha, made the observations in the report that also analysed action taken by the Union government on the observations and recommendations in its Eleventh Report.
Six major contaminants
The 14th report of the Standing Committee on Water Resources, which was submitted last week, also pointed out how the contamination of water supply was due to arsenic, fluoride, iron, nitrates, heavy metals and high salinity.
It noted that of the rural habitations affected by water contamination, “3,112 habitations are affected due to arsenic contamination, 2,972 with fluoride, 31,142 with iron, 866 with nitrate contamination, 300 with heavy metals and 10,575 habitations with high salinity in water.”
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The Committee further noted that under National Water Quality Sub Mission (NWQSM), which was launched in March, 2017 – as a part of erstwhile National Rural Drinking Water Programme – a plan was drawn to provide safe drinking water to 27,544 identified arsenic or fluoride-affected rural habitations by March, 2021.
Of these, it added that “as on 15 February, 2021, barring 78 habitations rest of the habitations have been covered under the scheme.”
Contamination due to iron, high salinity yet to be addressed
However, the Committee pointed out that iron and salinity contamination of water remained a major issue. It added that “the Department is silent with regard to action taken for providing clean drinking water to habitation affected with other contaminants, like iron and salinity, which constituted bulk of the water quality affected habitations.”
The parliamentary panel therefore recommended that the Department focus its attention on these habitations.
The Committee also said, “Though the piped water supply is the only solution to tackle water quality problems, till such time piped water supply reaches every rural household/habitation, alternate arrangement should be made to supply clean water by installing Community Water Purification Plants (CWPPs) in each Gram Panchayat/ Habitation in the country.”
Panel expresses scepticism about adequacy of CWPPs
The Committee said it has been told that 32,277 CWPPs have been set up in the country so far by various States. However, it said it was “quite sceptical as to whether these CWPPs are adequate enough to cater to the requirements of all quality affected habitations.”
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Therefore, it recommended that the department in consultation with states assess the total requirements of CWPPs and draw an action plan to set up adequate CWPPs in all the habitations.
The panel said the department in its action taken reply had stated that “planning and implementation of piped water supply scheme in water quality-affected habitations based on a safe water source takes time” and that “purely as an interim measure, provisions have been made to set up Community Water Purification Plants (CWPPs) to provide 8-10 lpcd potable water to meet drinking and cooking need of every household, in these habitations.”
Referring to the reply, the Committee said it “also does not state in specific terms as to whether any action plan has been prepared for setting up CWPPs in all water quality affected habitations.” Therefore, the panel demanded that a “a time bound programme be formulated in consultation with concerned States for setting up of CWPPs in all water quality affected habitations.”