Lok Sabha Question No. 2270 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-03-08
Subject: Contaminated Drinking Water
Ministry: DRINKING WATER AND SANITATION
Asked by: RAGHAV LAKHANPAL, HARISHCHANDRA DEORAM CHAVAN

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF DRINKING WATER AND SANITATION LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.  2270 TO BE ANSWERED ON 08/03/2018

## Contaminated Drinking Water

## 2270.   SHRI RAGHAV LAKHANPAL: SHRI HARISH CHANDRA CHAVAN:

Will the Minister of DRINKING WATER AND SANITATION be pleased to state:

- (a) whether  excessive  quantity  of  arsenic/other  chemicals  have  been  found  in drinking water in various parts of the country and if so, the details thereof, Statewise; (b) whether the Government has conducted any study in this regard and if so, the outcome thereof and the reaction of the Government thereto; (c) whether cases of adverse effects on health due to presence of such chemicals/contaminants in drinking water have also been reported in the country and if so, the details thereof, State-wise; and the steps taken by the Government to check such health hazards and to provide
- (d) safe drinking water in the country?

## ANSWER MINISTER OF STATE FOR MINISTRY OF DRINKING   WATER AND SANITATION (SHRI S.S.AHLUWALIA)

(a):  State-wise number of habitations having excessive fluoride, arsenic, iron, salinity, iron,  nitrate  and  heavy  metal  as  reported  by  the  states  into  Integrated  Management Information System (IMIS) of the Ministry as on 01 st  March, 2018, is at Annexure. (b) to (d): Rural drinking water supply is a state subject.  For improving the coverage of safe drinking water to rural population, this Ministry supplements the efforts of the states by providing them with technical and financial assistance through the centrally sponsored  National  Rural  Drinking  Water  Programme  (NRDWP).  It  is  the  State Governments who plan, design, approve, execute and operate & maintain the schemes for providing safe drinking water to rural population. The Ministry has advised all the states to carry water testing of sources once in a  year  for  chemical  parameter  and  twice  in  a  year  (pre  and  post  mansoon)  for bacteriological  parameter  and  as  and  when  water  related  diseases  are  detected. Monitoring and surveillance in respect of disease is the mandate of Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. To deal with arsenic and fluoride contamination, with the recommendation of NITI  Aayog,  Government  of  India  has  released  Rs  800  crore  in  March  2016  for commissioning Community Water Purification Plants (CWPPs) so that safe water for drinking and cooking needs are addressed immediately. In addition, funds to the tune of Rs.100 Crore each are also provided for tackling arsenic and fluoride problems in West Bengal and Rajasthan respectively for the last mile connectivity in commissioning surface water based piped water supply schemes. The  Ministry  of  Drinking  Water  and  Sanitation  had  launched  the  National Water Quality Sub-Mission (NWQSM) on 22 nd  March 2017 under NRDWP to provide safe drinking water to about 28,000 arsenic / fluoride affected habitations. As on date, Rs.2421.64 Crore has been released under NWQSM to provide safe drinking water in arsenic / fluoride affected habitations.

In  additional  to  this,  the  funds  provided  to  the  States  under  NRDWP  can  be utilized for coverage and tackling water quality problems.

## Annexure referred to in the reply to Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 2270   due for reply on 08/03/2018

## State-wise number of habitations having excessive fluoride, arsenic, iron, salinity, iron, nitrate and heavy metal as reported by the states into Integrated Management Information System (IMIS) of the Ministry as on 01 st  March, 2018

| S. No.   | Nameof the State   | Number of affected habitations   | Number of affected habitations   | Number of affected habitations   | Number of affected habitations   | Number of affected habitations   | Number of affected habitations   | Number of affected habitations   |
|----------|--------------------|----------------------------------|----------------------------------|----------------------------------|----------------------------------|----------------------------------|----------------------------------|----------------------------------|
| S. No.   | Nameof the State   | Fluoride                         | Arsenic                          | Iron                             | Salinity                         | Nitrate                          | Heavy Metal                      | Total                            |
| 1        | Andaman &Nicobar   | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                |
| 2        | Andhra Pradesh     | 348                              | 0                                | 1                                | 62                               | 6                                | 0                                | 417                              |
| 3        | Arunachal Pradesh  | 0                                | 0                                | 31                               | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 31                               |
| 4        | Assam              | 285                              | 4518                             | 6213                             | 0                                | 0                                | 7                                | 11023                            |
| 5        | Bihar              | 898                              | 871                              | 2443                             | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 4212                             |
| 6        | Chhattisgarh       | 403                              | 19                               | 732                              | 2                                | 10                               | 0                                | 1166                             |
| 7        | Goa                | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                |
| 8        | Gujarat            | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                |
| 9        | Haryana            | 118                              | 0                                | 0                                | 9                                | 0                                | 0                                | 127                              |
| 10       | Himachal Pradesh   | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                |
| 11       | Jammu &Kashmir     | 4                                | 0                                | 12                               | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 16                               |
| 12       | Jharkhand          | 551                              | 102                              | 2217                             | 0                                | 4                                | 0                                | 2874                             |
| 13       | Karnataka          | 580                              | 4                                | 77                               | 40                               | 319                              | 1                                | 1021                             |
| 14       | Kerala             | 34                               | 0                                | 199                              | 96                               | 32                               | 0                                | 361                              |
| 15       | Madhya Pradesh     | 171                              | 0                                | 5                                | 10                               | 0                                | 0                                | 186                              |
| 16       | Maharashtra        | 79                               | 0                                | 17                               | 93                               | 90                               | 0                                | 279                              |
| 17       | Manipur            | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                |
| 18       | Meghalaya          | 0                                | 0                                | 32                               | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 32                               |
| 19       | Mizoram            | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                |
| 20       | Nagaland           | 0                                | 0                                | 30                               | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 30                               |
| 21       | Odisha             | 104                              | 0                                | 2553                             | 379                              | 0                                | 0                                | 3036                             |
| 22       | Puducherry         | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                |
| 23       | Punjab             | 301                              | 701                              | 268                              | 14                               | 146                              | 2112                             | 3542                             |
| 24       | Rajasthan          | 6065                             | 0                                | 5                                | 12631                            | 1053                             | 0                                | 19754                            |
| 25       | Sikkim             | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                |
| 26       | Tamil Nadu         | 0                                | 0                                | 175                              | 22                               | 0                                | 0                                | 197                              |
| 27       | Telangana          | 798                              | 0                                | 36                               | 182                              | 145                              | 0                                | 1161                             |
| 28       | Tripura            | 0                                | 0                                | 2542                             | 0                                | 0                                | 0                                | 2542                             |
| 29       | Uttar Pradesh      | 179                              | 748                              | 362                              | 80                               | 10                               | 0                                | 1379                             |
| 30       | Uttarakhand        | 0                                | 0                                | 13                               | 0                                | 3                                | 0                                | 16                               |
| 31       | West Bengal        | 1336                             | 10162                            | 5754                             | 474                              | 0                                | 271                              | 17997                            |
|          | Total              | 12254                            | 17125                            | 23717                            | 14094                            | 1818                             | 2391                             | 71399                            |