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At Wana an excellent new tube well gives a full supply which together
with the original fort-well and irrigation water is turning Wana into a garden
city.
At Bannu chloronomes have at last been provided for the two wells which
were previously hand treated. To the writer's certain knowledge recom
-mendations for the chloronomes have been made since 1929.
At Nasirabad on the edge of the "Drought" area the water supply has
been so much reduced that drastic restrictions had to be imposed and finally
has necessitated the removal of all troops.
New water supplies from deep tube wells have been provided in a number
of places: Razmak, Lucknow and Agra. At the last a scheme of 5 new wells
with high level tanks will give an ample supply.
The standard of No-lactose-fractors-in-100 cc. is aimed at and laboratory
reports indicate that this high standard is usually achieved in all our larger
supplies. In several stations where municipal or other civil supplies are
utilised in cantonments it has been found necessary to rechlorinate the supply
to obtain results which satisfy our standards. For example at Secunderabad
an additional chlorination plant was required at the Gun Rock distributing
reservoir to give satisfactory results from the Hyderabad Chlorinated Supply.
Similarly at Allahabad rechlorination was necessary. This may of course
be due to the condition of the pipe system as in the case of Lahore (above).
At both Bareilly and Roorkee, an investigation was carried out with
regard to the presence of lactose fermenting organisms in the water supply.
In both cases, the infection was considered to be taking place in the storage
tanks, and steps are being taken to dust proof the tanks. In no instance were
the lactose fermenting organisms adjudged to be typical coli, or faecal orga
- n i s m s . A s p e c i a l r e p o r t h a s b e e n r e n d e r e d o n t h e s u p p l y a t B a r e i l l y .
At Meerut one well produced suspicious water during the rains. This is
being investigated by the R. E. with a view to increasing the protection of
the well, and it is to be watched carefully this year. Fortunately the well
can be cut out of use quite readily.
(ii)
Fluorine content.—In Lahore District the fluorine content of new
water supplies from tube wells were investigated.
In addition to the usual bacteriological examinations, each new tube-
well has been tested for its fluorine content by the courtesy of the Director
of Public Health, Punjab, and of B. L. Khuller, Esq., M.Sc.; A.I.C., Public
Health Department, Chemist.
Water from tube-wells in Lahore and Ferozepore give a fluorine content
of from 0.15 to 0.4 parts per million. The Director of Public Health con
-siders that it is too early to give standards for Indian waters, but Petrie
and Churchill have stated that the water supply in all the affected areas in
the U. S. A. contained over 2 parts per million.
Pillai writing from the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, states
that a small community of individuals suffering from fluorosis were consum
- i n g w a t e r c o n t a i n i n g 4 t o 5 p a r t s p e r m i l l i o n o f f l u o r i n e .
The fluorine contents of the Punjab waters relative to the occurrence
of the clinical condition are being worked out.
(iii)
Poisoning of water supplies by tribesmen.— It was formerly held that
the tribesmen never interfered with water supplies. This comfortable belief