Thane:
A week after World Water Day, we at Thane Plus
thought that it would be interesting to see how
well water is managed by both residents and the
Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC).
Check
check:TMC claims the water sample collection increases
in the monsoon
While checking the TMC monthly report of water
potability, we saw that some areas in the report
do not have potable water to consume. Furthermore,
some areas have not even sent out their monthly
report.
According
to the February report from the TMC's water labs,
there are two tests taken to determine water potability.
One
is carried out by the health department and the
other is carried out by the water department.
The samples are usually collected from reservoirs,
households, water taps, co-op societies and commercial
units.
In
the first zone that comprises areas like Naupada,
Uthalsar and Kopri, the health department's tests
in Naupada showed that out of 66 water samples
collected, eight of them (especially in household
direct) were not potable. Similarly in Uthalsar,
out of 43 water samples, two of them were not
potable.
However,
in the Kopri zone there were no water samples
collected by the health department to determine
its potability.
However,
while the water department has carried out some
tests in the same area by collecting samples from
reservoirs, households, water taps and commercial
units, there have been no samples to determine
the potability of water samples in co-operative
societies.
In
summer, this is a huge concern, as in this weather
because of the heat it is possible to counter
several diseases. Furthermore, since the chance
of getting dehydrated is much greater, it is also
a longer recovery period.
In
the second zone comprising Kalva, Mumbra and Wagle
Estate, there have been no samples tested for
cooperative societies from the three areas by
the health department.
Similarly,
in the areas, there has been no water sample collected
from commercial units in Kalva and Mumbra for
testing by the health department.The same problem
can be seen in the third zone comprising Manpada,
Railadevi and Vartak Nagar.
The
reports show that there have been no samples collected
from commercial units in either Railadevi or Manpada.
According to sources from one of the civic pollution
control laboratories, certain areas do not send
in their samples every month.
"If
they haven't sent it in the month of February,
we usually get the sample next month or the month
after. There have been instances where we haven’t
got samples, but we keep sending notices to the
concerned parties to send in their samples asap,"
informed the source.
Speaking
to Thane Plus, Dr RT Kendre, the Medical Officer
for Health in the TMC, informed that he wasn't
aware of the samples not being received, but said
that in summer, as the water contamination is
a lot less than it is in the monsoons, the sample
collections are also a lot fewer.
"We
usually increase our sample collection during
the monsoons when there are greater chances of
diseases spreading," he informed.
However,
this theory put forth by Dr Kendre could raise
a few questions as summer is also a period for
waterborne disease to spread. Gastroenteritis
is one such disease that is seen during the summers
and if the potability levels aren't checked soon,
there are chances that the water consumed by us
could result in the spread of such diseases.
courtesy:ghodbunderroad.com
