The West Bengal government today said receding ground water level, besides arsenic and fluoride contamination in water was identified in various parts of the state including the city of Kolkata.
Replying to a question in the state Assembly, state Water Investigation and Development Minister Soumen Mahapatra said the state government has a standard procedure of periodical examination of water samples from tube-wells and other sources, besides appropriate measures to curb the menace.
Officials of the State Water Investigation Directorate (SWID) have identified receding ground water level and contamination of arsenic and fluoride in many places and out of the 341 blocks in the state, arsenic contamination in samples of tube-well water have been identified as many as in 81 blocks and fluoride contamination in 49 blocks, besides excessive salinity in 59 blocks, the minister said.
Surprisingly arsenic concentration in ground water has been identified in many places in the Kolkata metropolis including areas like Anwar Shah Road, Ghulam Md Shah Road, Sinthee More, Vivekananda Road, Darga Road, Babughat, Chowbaga, Balia More Garia and R K Mukherjee Road at Baranagar, the minister said.
The state government has already upgraded its Central Water Investigation Laboratory with help of the World Bank, the minister said, adding, steps were also being taken to modernise laboratories in the districts.
Though no area has been identified as critical, 38 blocks in the state have been identified as semi-critical, while 54 others were leading towards semi-critical stage with arsenic or fluoride contamination level in ground water, Mahapatra said.
A major study conducted by the state government revealed that out of 341 blocks in the state, only 139 were safe zones in regard to contamination of ground water with either arsenic or fluoride.
Arsenic contaminated districts included North 24-Parganas, Nadia, Howrah, Hooghly, South 24-Parganas, Malda, Murshidabad and Burdwan and Fluoride contaminated districts were Purulia, Bankura, Birbhum, South Dinajpur, Malda, South 24-Parganas and North Dinajpur, the minister said.
Salinity in water was found most in South 24-Parganas, East Midnapore, Howrah and North 24-Parganas districts, Mahapatra added.
