BERHAMPUR: How good is the quality of drinking water supplied to Berhampur? The audit by Principal Accountant General has detected multiple deficiencies in testing of drinking water which has raised serious question marks on water quality people of the city consume. The Odisha State Urban Water Supply Policy 2013 mandates 100 per cent water quality is supposed to be maintained and accordingly, the Urban Water Supply Protocol was approved by the government prescribing parameters for testing and frequencies to be strictly followed.
However, the audit found several discrepancies in the system by the Berhampur PH division which has a testing laboratory in the water treatment plant (WTP) at Jagadalpur.
As per the urban water quality monitoring protocol, samples must be tested for 26 parameters for each production well and distribution system every month. However, limited tests were conducted by Spectro Pvt Ltd for samples taken from water treatment plant at Jagadalpur.
The tests were conducted for PH, conductivity, turbidity, total dissolved solids, total alkaline, total hardness, chlorides, residual free and nitrate, the report said. However, tests for minerals like iron, calcium, magnesium, chloride, fluoride, sulphate, nitrate sodium, potassium, phosphate, silica and dissolve oxygen were not conducted.
“In absence of regular check of all the 26 parameters, the supply of unsafe drinking water to consumers cannot be ruled out,” the audit said.
Similarly, as per government instructions, metal parameter in water samples must be tested annually once for each intake and production well, stand posts and tube wells. This is to prevent intake of metals such as lead, cadmium and nickel in drinking water beyond permissible limit which impacts the human body.
Presence of excessive metals delays physical and mental developments in children, leads to kidney problems, liver damages, skin allergy and high blood pressure.
However, the audit noticed that only three sets of tests for PH, chlorine and turbidity were carried out at the testing laboratory of WTP at Jagadalpur. It further found water contents have more PH and turbidity.
During physical verification of sites, it was found testing machines like hot air oven, incubator, autoclave machines and colony counter for bacteriological tests in the testing laboratory were lying idle for the last two years and no bacteriological tests are being done.
Despite detection and graveness of the report, the superintending engineer of PH division stated that suggestions of audit will be taken into care in future but no compliance was sent to the Accountant General’s office.