Arsenic levels have registered an alarming increase in the water in Lucknow, causing a grave threat to the health of the people in the state capital.
A study conducted by the state groundwater board has found that the presence of arsenic in the posh Gomti Nagar locality is three times more than the permissible limits.
The arsenic concentration here was found to be 0.03 mg/litre against the safe limit of 0.01 mg/litre which are three times more than the safe limit.
The Aliganj and Nirala Nagar localities in main city areas have also shown a high arsenic level of 0.02 mg/litre.
The other localities where the heavy metal was found exceeding the safe limit are Vijay Nagar (0.023), Behsabagh (0.022), Aashiana (0.016), Sujanpura (0.017), Transport Nagar (0.018) and LDA Colony (0.015). “Water drawn from 16 handpumps and one tubewell from these prominent localities were found to be contaminated with arsenic,” said senior hydro-geologist, Dr R.S. Sinha.
Arsenic has also been detected above safe limit in 144 blocks spread over 28 districts in the state. Its occurrence in relatively low concentration has also been reported from more than 10,000 public hand pumps in 49 districts. According to the concept paper released by the ground water department, Ballia and Lakhimpur Kheri are the worst affected districts with arsenic in groundwater. Reoti, Belhari and Dubhand blocks in Ballia and Nighasan, Isanagar, Palia and Ramia Behar in Lakhimpur are the most critically contaminated areas.
The arsenic level in these localities is around 0.05 mg/litre — five times more than the safe limits. Essentially, it is the Ghagra basin, which is considered most severely arsenic affected region of the state. In the urban side, the heavy metal has been detected in alarming concentration in Unnao and in Kanpur. Earlier, a UP Jal Nigam-Unicef study showed that the groundwater sources in 20 districts including Allahabad, Bulandshahr and Rampur were free from arsenic.
Districts like Aligarh and Mathura, which were earlier found free of arsenic in the study, have now been found to have arsenic in groundwater at some locations.
Experts say that arsenic presence in groundwater is because of geological reasons.