Lok Sabha Question No. 163 (STARRED), answered on 2016-07-28
Subject: Quality of Drinking Water
Ministry: DRINKING WATER AND SANITATION
Asked by: RAMESH POKHRIYAL NISHANK, AJAY NISHAD

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF DRINKING WATER & SANITATION

## LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO.163 TO BE ANSWERED ON 28.07.2016

## Quality of Drinking Water

## †*163. DR. RAMESH POKHRIYAL "NISHANK": SHRI AJAY NISHAD:

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

(a) whether any mechanism is in place to periodically assess the quality of drinking water and if so, the details thereof and the interval at which drinking water samples are drawn for testing; (b) whether there are shortage of laboratories and trained staff for testing water samples and if so, the details thereof and the corrective action taken thereon along with outcome thereof; and (c) whether any special scheme has been formulated to maintain the quality of water and restore supply of drinking water in the border, remote and backward areas in the country

- including Himalayan region and, if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER MINISTER OF DRINKING WATER AND SANITATION (SHRI NARENDRA SINGH TOMAR)

(a) to (c)   A Statement is laid on the Table of the House.

## Statement referred to in the reply to Lok Sabha Starred Question No.163   due for reply on 28.07.2016

- (a) In  order  to  streamline  the  mechanism  of  testing  quality  of  drinking  water,  the Ministry has published the Uniform Drinking Water Quality Monitoring Protocol and widely  distributed  to  all  the  States  upto  the  district  level.    The  Protocol  defines parameters of testing, frequency of sampling, laboratory requirements like chemicals, glassware, manpower, space, etc. at various levels ie., the State, district, sub-division and block level laboratories.  The State level laboratory shall focus on monitoring specific contaminants like heavy metals, pesticides and conduct virological  examination  if  bacteriological  contamination  is  very  high.  The  District and  Sub-district laboratories should  monitor  twice  a year every source for bacteriological parameters and once a year for chemical parameters.
- (b) As  reported  by  the  States  into  the  online  Integrated  Management  Information System (IMIS), there are 27 State level, 730 district level, 276 block level and 1,110 sub-divisional level water quality testing laboratories apart from 87 mobile water quality  testing  laboratories.  As  reported  by  States,  in  730  district  water  quality testing  laboratories,  a  total  of  2,662  people  have  been  reported  working  by  the States as on 21/7/2016 while 1,184 people are reportedly working in block level laboratories  and  another  3,048  people  working  in  sub-divisional  water  quality testing  laboratories.  Further  in  87  mobile  water  quality  testing  laboratories,  424 people have been deployed for sampling and testing the quality of drinking water. In general,  trained  and  qualified  manpower  for  testing  are  lacking  in  some  of  the laboratories and therefore, the Ministry suggested the States to hire trained people from the local market following due process and pay their wages from the 3% Water Quality  Monitoring  &  Surveillance  component  of  the  centrally  sponsored  National Rural Drinking Water Programme.
- (c) The  National  Rural  Drinking  Water  Programme  is  applicable  in  the  rural  areas throughout the country including border, remote and backward areas in the country including  Himalayan  region,  which  aims  at  providing  safe  drinking  water  in adequate quantity.

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