Lok Sabha Question No. 830 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2020-02-06
Subject: Contamination of Ground Water
Ministry: JAL SHAKTI
Asked by: Uttam Kumar Nalamada Reddy

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF JAL SHAKTI, DEPARTMENT OF WATER RESOURCES, RIVER DEVELOPMENT & GANGA REJUVENATION

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 830

## ANSWERED ON 06.02.2020

## CONTAMINATION OF GRO UND WATER

## 830. SHRI UTTAM KUMAR REDDY NALAMADA

Will the Minister of JAL SHAKTI be pleased to state:

(a) whether the Government is aware of the high uranium concentration in the ground water of Telangana and Kadapa, Andhra Pradesh and if so, the details thereof;

(b) whether any investigatio n has been conducted for such contamination of ground water in thes districts and if so, the details thereof;

(c) the steps being taken to rectify it and prevent any further uranium contamination of grou (d)  whether  the  Government  has  c onducted  any  study  to  identify  the  effects  of  this  ground contamination on agriculture, people and the environment in these areas and if so, the detail

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR JAL SHAKTI & SOCIAL JUSTICE AND EMPOWERMENT

## (SHRI RATTAN LAL KATARIA )

(a)  to  (d)Atomic  Minerals  Directorate  for  Exploration  and  Research  (AMD)  under  Departmen Atomic Energy collects environmental baseline data including ground water samples around the deposits, before mining is taken up.

AMD has collected ground water samples from 25 private tube wells / hand pumps, November, 2018 to July, 2019 around the Lambapur -Peddagattu region in Nalgonda district, Telanga as part of environmental baseline data collection and it has been found that Uranium values in the sample locations  vary  from  1  to  2,618  parts  per  billion  (ppb).  Thirteen  out  of  the  twenty -five  samples  have Uranium content less than 60 ppb, which is the  prescribed  safety  limit  by  Atomic  Energy  Regulato Board (AERB).

Similarly, AMD has collected 31 samples in Kadapa district, Andhra Pradesh . Uranium values in the sample locations found to vary from 1 to 516 ppb. Twenty eight out of the thirty one Uranium content less than 60 ppb.

Uranium content in groundwater is a natural occurrence and is controlled by sever such  as  geo - chemistry  of  the  aquifer  rock  and  its  Uranium  content,  recharge/discharge  con aquifers, fluctuation in ground water levels with respect to the Uranium ore body, residence time of the ground water in the aquifers, climatic conditions, movement of ground water along fractures the  ore  body ,  anthropogenic  activities  etc. Further, high  Uranium  content  in  the  ground  water  from granitic country rock is a common occurrence in such type of terrains.

AMD  invariably  shares  the  analytical  data  of  groundwater  samples  during  variou Geological  Programming  Board  meetings  conducted  by  State  Governments  and  in  AMD's  Apex Exploration and Research Advisory Council meetings. Further, AMD has communicated analytical data ground water of entire Telangana State to the Government of Telangana.

Drinking  water  is  a  State  subject  and  Government  of  India  supplements  the  effort Government by providing f inancial and technical assistance to provide potable water to rural through the centrally sponsored scheme Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM).

Further,water  being  a  State  subject,  efforts  to  initiate  suitable  interventio conservation /manag ement/remediation of contaminants in water resources is primarily States' responsibility. However, steps taken by the Central Government in this regard are at the following URL: http://mowr.gov.in/sites/default/files/Steps\_to\_control\_water\_depletion\_Jun2019.pdf .

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