Bathing in Ganga poses high risk to health: Govt data

Faecal coliform levels 513 times permissible limit; Kanpur, Allahabad and Varanasi most polluted zones

NEW DELHI: A dip in the Ganga at Sangam, where the Yamuna meets it in Allahabad, could expose people to levels of the faecal coliform (FC) that are 5-13 times the permissible limit, official data from 2017 shows. This limit is unsafe for bathing.

FC bacteria, such as E.coli, are found in excreta that contaminates water through untreated sewerage. The permissible limit for FC is 2,500 MPN (most probable number)/00 ml, while the desirable level is 500 MPN/100 ml.

Pollution levels were high centred around holy sites, where high population density and activities add to the pollution load, shows Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data.

In Uttar Pradesh, 50% of the 16 stations for which latest FC data is available for 2018, did not meet desired standards. For Bihar, 88% of the stations did not meet standards.

Some of the most polluted stretches were Kanpur, Allahastate bad and Varanasi in UP. At the Jajmau pumping station in Kanpur in 2017, FC levels were 10- 23 times the limit. This not a one off spike. In 2011, too, the station recorded FC levels ranging from 4,000 to 93,000 MPN/100 ml.

At Malviya bridge in Varanasi, the FC levels are 9-20 times the limit. In 2011, values ranged between 13-19 times the limit at the Malviya bridge station.

At Ramrekhaghat in Buxar, the FC levels in August 2017 peaked at 160,00,000, which is 6,400 times the FC norm.

An analysis of 2017 data from pollution control boards in five states – Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal — through which the Ganga flows shows that water quality in the river was abysmal in Bihar and UP in 2017 mostly because of faecal pollution.

Data for West Bengal was not available but an earlier analysis of Ganga water quality data from 2016 showed high levels of FC contamination.

Most projects to treat sewerage were sanctioned in the past year and have yet to show results. Out of 94 stations that dot the Ganga’s main stem, readings from 76 stations was available. Data for only one Jharkhand station had satisfactory quality.

The CPCB data shows that the Ganga is cleanest as it flows from its source in Uttarakhand, with all stations in the state reporting satisfactory water quality.

In Uttar Pradesh, 65% of the stations had unsatisfactory water quality in 2017. In Bihar, 76% of the stations recorded unsatisfactory water quality, with no station reporting satisfactory water quality.