THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: As many as 82 labs of Kerala Water Authority (KWA), to test water quality, will become functional across the state from Wednesday. The labs, recognised by the National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration (NBL), have been set up as part of the Union government-assisted Jal Jeevan Mission.
Along with the labs, a self meter reading app that enables customers to carry out water meter reading and another app exclusively for KWA’s meter reading personnel will also be launched by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan at the KWA headquarters in the capital on Wednesday.
The public can get the water supplied to them tested at these labs set up at the district and sub-district levels. The public can also avail the facility by remitting the required amount online at qpay.kwa.kerala.gov.in and delivering the water sample to the lab. The results will be made available online.
According to a note from the KWA, the labs will also test the quality of water bodies in rural areas. Local Self Government institutions can avail the services of the lab before issuing licence to restaurants and commercial establishments that use drinking water.
The KWA has a state level lab in Ernakulam, 14 district labs and 32 sub-district labs. After the launch of the Jal Jeevan Mission, 38 new sub-district labs were added taking the total number of labs to 85. Of these, 82 have received NBL recognition. Also, the testing parameters have been increased from the existing 17 to 29.
For getting the chemical examination of water done, the public should bring two litres of water collected the same day to the lab. For bacterial tests, 100ml water should be brought in a sterilised bottle. The location and phone number of various laboratories are available on the KWA website www.kwa.kerala.gov.in. Customers can also call the toll free number 1916 for assistance.
What is tested
Sub-district level 17 Parameters: Colour, smell, turbidity, PH, electrical conductivity, acidity, total alkalinity, sulphate, total dissolved solids, total hardness, calcium, magnesium, chloride, flouride, iron, nitrate, residual chlorine.
State level 33 parameters including presence of heavy metals and pesticides
Testing rates
Domestic - Rs 850
Commercial - Rs 3,075
Various packages ranging from Rs 625 to Rs 2,450