Necessity of Potable Water: A Community Assessment

Necessity of Potable Water: A Community Assessment
( A Study on Water Related Problems in Sector 12 of Indira Nagar,Lucknow)
-Dr. D.K. Singh*
-Dr. Alok Chantia**
Water is defined as right to life in Indian Constitution under Article 21 but it is core truth
that purity of blue gold (water) is far away from an individual. It is well documented that
water has been contaminated by excess fluoride, excess arsenic, excess salinity, excess
iron, excess nitrate which are affecting 36988,3136,32597,38670,4003 habitants
respectively in Indian peninsula. It is not a borderline across this point. Water borne
diseases are another serious problem, which remains to be solved yet. Every year more
than one billion of our fellow human beings have little choice but to resort to using
potentially harmful and contaminated water. This is a crisis, which kills over 3900
children every day. Water borne diseases include- Typhoid fever, Giardia, Dysentery,
Diarrhea, Hepatitis, Polio, Worms etc. These diseases are extremely harmful not only to a
person’s health but also to their productivity, and to the welfare of the community as a
whole.
Water quality has emerged as a major issue with respect to sustainability of the water
supply systems. Ground water quality problems are of two types-
1. Contamination caused by geological formation that could lead to excess fluoride
arsenic, iron blackish ness etc.
2. Water pollution caused by human intervention such as bacteriological contamination,
nitrates, pesticides etc.
For surface water sources seasonal turbidity, industrial and domestic waste disposal,
agricultural wastes are the major water quality problems. It has been reported that more
than 2,00,000 rural habitants are affected by poor water quality. The poor are more
susceptible to ill health than those who are well off. They lack adequate supplies of clean
water and safe methods of disposing waste. Lack of water and sanitation create
conditions under which fecal-oral disease thrive. The transmission of diseases is also high
among vulnerable communities because they live in environments receptive to the
breeding of insect vectors that carry parasites. Gross inequalities in the reliability and
quality of water supply services on the one hand create a market for water vendors and on
the other hand encourage use of unsafe local wells and springs in urban slums.
Over 3 million people world wide, most of them children die each year of diarrhea
diseases linked to inadequate water supply, sanitation and hygiene. Nearly one third of
these fatalities take place in south-east Asia. Children in particular suffer from water
related illness. Each episode of diarrhea sets back children’s growth by lowering their
appetite and reducing their calorie and nutrient intake. Persistent diarrhea and related
diseases jeopardize children’s health development. It has been estimated that in India
21% of all communicable diseases are water related.
*Reader, Dept. of Social Work, Lucknow University, Lucknow
**Lecturer, Dept. of Anthropology, Sri J.N.P.G. College,Lucknow
In addition there is emerging water borne pathogens that need attention in the near future.
Emerging pathogens are those that have appeared in a human population for the first time
or have occurred previously, but are increasing in incidence or expanding into areas
where they have not been reported usually in last 20 years. In 2001 a review of scientific
literature identified 1415 species of infectious organism known to be pathogenic to
humans, of these 61% were zoonotic and 12% were associated with diseases considered
to be emerging.
Table-1
S.N. Type of Organism D i s e a se Symptoms
1. Bacteria (a) Typhoid
(b) Cholera
(c) Bacterial
dysentery
(d) Enteritis
Diarrhea, severe vomiting,
enlarged spleen, inflated intestine,
often fatal if left untreated.
Diarrhea, severe vomiting,
dehydration, often fatal if left
untreated.
Diarrhea, fatal in infants without
proper treatment.
Severe stomach pain,
nausea, vomiting, rarely fatal.
2. Viruses Infectious hepatitis Fever, severe head ache, loss of
appetite, abdominal pain,
jaundice, enlarged liver, rarely
fatal but may cause permanent
liver damage.
3. Parasitic protozoa (a) Amoebic
dysentery
(b) Giardia
Severe diarrhea, head ache,
abdominal pain, chills, fever, if
not treated can cause liver
abscess, bowel perforation and
death.
Diarrhea, abdominal cramps,
flatulence, belching, fatigue.
4. Parasitic worms Schistosomiasis Abdominal pain, skin rash,
anemia, chronic fatigue and
chronic general ill health.
Table 1 shows type of organism causing different diseases and its symptoms
Present study is based on Sector 12 of Indira Nagar Colony of Lucknow , Capital city of
Uttar Pradesh. It is biggest colony of Uttar Pradesh, where more than 10,000 people are
living. Indira Nagar Colony acts as neighbour hood society where every caste and class
reside together. Only 1,00 households of Sector 12 have been taken for present study by
random sampling instead of whole population. The researchers reside in Sector 12
themselves and hence it was convenient for us to analyse water based problems by the
method of participant observation instead of survey method which could give only
dialogic interpretation and it would not have been possible to reach at any concrete
solution or finding.
In colony system water is supplied by Water Works Department instead of from well,
ponds etc. An effort has been made to identify water based health problems, if it exists in
that locality. It is very hard for an individual to explain health and other medical term
related to disease caused by water. An attempt has also been made to interview
respondents to find out any existing disease caused by water. Present study shows that
contamination of water is main problem in this sector. 80% respondents reported about
stone problem, dysentery, stomach aches etc. Not a single programme on water related
issues has been conducted in the last ten years in Sector 12 of Indira Nagar. Respondents
know about contamination of water but due to poverty, lack of accessibility of proper
health care they are becoming victims of circumstances and hence of many water borne
diseases.
95% households are using electric motors for drawing water from the taps whereas only
5% are getting water from taps supplied by Water Works Department. The water quality
is so poor in the area that if water is kept for more than two hours in the bucket, a layer of
white wax deposits at the upper layer of water. Sand particles and mud is also found
making water yellow or black if water is kept for the same duration. The water supplied
in the area is so contaminated that if two iron rods are put in the water for heating it
through electricity we find white deposition on the rods.
Lastly it is suggested that water contamination can be checked by using domestic or
ethno products such as alum or amla etc.
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