Of 337 Moga villages, water unsafe in 150

Kulwinder Sandhu

Tribune News Service

Moga, December 10

As per a recent report of the Water Supply and Sanitation Department, out of 337, in more than 150 villages here, traces of uranium and heavy metals have been found in the underground water.

Uranium has been found in about 82 villages, including the district headquarters in the Moga city, Aluminium in 21 villages; nitrate, iron, nickel and lead in 52 villages; mercury and selenium in one village each and iron in 35 villages.

The quantity of uranium is 50 per cent over and above the WHO norms. The source of uranium has not been detected, so far, even as scientists of Bhabha Atomic Research Centre and many universities have been conducting studies in this regard. As a result, the number of patients with cancer and other diseases is increasing, with children being born with abnormalities. In the past 15 years here, more than 3,000 persons have died of various types of deadly cancers.

Kulwant Singh Dhaliwal, Global Ambassador of World Cancer Care Organisation, said the government must adopt remedial measures to prevent the people from catching deadly cancer, hepatitis-C and other deadly diseases. The government should also provide clean potable water to the people, he said.

Meanwhile, Executive Engineer of the Water Supply and Sanitation Department, JS Chahal, said the Punjab Government would provide clean potable water through the canal water systems under the Surface Water Supply Scheme to 85 villages at an estimated cost of Rs176.11 crore, funded by the World Bank, to four lakh residents. It would take at least six months to complete the project since the construction work in progress, he said.

On the other hand, a few years back, Moga Municipal Corporation envisaged a project to install RO plants in all wards of the city, but, the Local Bodies Department has not sanctioned it. The Water Supply and Sanitation Department prepared a detailed report of the project keeping in view the presence of uranium in the underground water.

The Mayor of Moga, Akshit Jain, said he had reminded the Local Bodies Department to clear the project a number of times, but, in vain, probably, due to political considerations.