Arsenic Problem in Ballia District (U.P.), A Road Map for Mitigation of Problem

Arsenic Problem in Ballia District, A Road Map for Mitigation of Problem

Arsenic in the ground water is a worldwide problem as about 150 million people are at risk and more than 70 countries are suffering from this havoc. Arsenic is a carcinogen and responsible of various types of cancers. This problem is more wide spread in middle and lower Ganga Basin, as the source of arsenic is the Himalayas and arsenic will be found in all those areas, in varying quantities, where Himalaya-fed rivers flow. Ballia District of UP is also suffering with this problem. A report by Prof Dipanker Chakraborty, director at the School of Environment Studies at Jadavpur University who has carried out extensive work in the arsenic affected parts of UP, Bihar and Bangladesh, has said that in places where there is large-scale withdrawal , groundwater gets aerated and the arsenic compounds present in the water get degraded by the oxygen. Arsenic also has an affinity for iron, so arsenic- laced water will usually have a yellow tinge due to the presence of iron. In Ballia district during 1994-2009, there has been an increase of 40% in tubewell irrigated area which indicate the extent of withdrawal of ground water. A team of Imran Ali, Atiqur Rahman, Tabrez Alam Khan, Syed Dilshad Alam, Joheb Khan, of Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, conducted a study in 2010 to study the extent  of arsenic contamination by using chemical data and GIS application (Ali et al., 2012).  100 samples were collected from deep, medium and shallow aquifer twice in pre-monsoon (April, 2010) and post-monsoon seasons (December, 2010). The samples were analyzed by atomic absorption spectrometer and correlated with geological features. The correlation between arsenic contamination with geological features and seasonal variation were analyzed by GIS. An analysis of their results indicated following:

1.      The arsenic contamination increases as the width of Doab is decreasing i.e. from west to east.

2.      The blocks which have zero irrigated area from canal have more arsenic contamination.

3.      The arsenic level is lower in deeper aquifer.

4.      No much seasonal variation has been observed in that year but this may be due to poor rainfall during monsoon 2010, only 511 mm against normal of 983 mm. Due to this no recharge could have taken place.

In view of this, following short term, medium term and long term measures are suggested:

Short term

1.      Arsenic filter developed by Jadavpur University should be provided to villages with priority to blocks located in eastern part of district.

2.      All hand pumps should be deepened to extract water only from deep aquifer. This will take care of arsenic problem in western and central part to a good extent.

Medium term

1.      As the non-presence of canal has shown higher arsenic concentration which indicates that the recharge to ground water reduces the concentration. Due to non maintenance of village ponds, most of them have silted up and thus the recharge capacity of these have reduced significantly. Thus all ponds should be desilted and their original capacity should be restored. This will facilitate recharge of ground water and subsequent reduction in arsenic concentration. The MANAREGA funds can be used for this purpose.

Long term

1.      Since the deep aquifer will be tapped for both drinking as well as irrigation purposes, there is need to develop a ground water recharge plan to this aquifer. The water balance of the ground water aquifer should be studied and the amount of water withdrawn every year should be recharged back. This will improve the quality in long run and will reverse the deterioration process of water quality.

Ref.: Imran Ali, A. Rahman, T. A. Khan,  S. D. Alam, J. Khan. 2012. Recent Trends of Arsenic Contamination in Groundwater of Ballia District, Uttar Pradesh, India Gazi University Journal of Science GU J Sci 25(4): 853-861

Table 1 Arsenic levels in ground water in different blocks of Ballia district

Sl. No.	Block	Pre-monsoon 2010			Post monsoon 2010
		Shallow	Medium	Deep	Shallow	Medium	Deep
1.	Belthra Road	14-180	30-120	6-60	23-180	10-130	2-102
2.	Nagra	14-180	30-120	6-60	23-180	10-130	2-102
3.	Rasra	14-180	30-120	6-60	23-180	10-130	2-102
4.	Chilkahar	14-180	30-120	6-60	23-180	10-130	2-102
5.	Pandah	14-180	30-120	6-60	23-180	10-130	2-102
6.	Navanagar	180-360	121-310	61-155	181-360	131-250	103-203
7.	Maniyar	361-540	211-300	116-176	361-540	251-370	204-304
8.	Gadhwar	181-360	121-310	61-115	181-360	121-310	61-115
9.	Beruarbari	181-360	121-310	61-115	181-360	121-310	61-115
10.	Hanumanganj	181-360	121-310	61-115	181-360	121-310	61-115
11.	Sohaon	361-540	211-300	116-176	361-540	211-300	116-176
12.	Bansdih	541-720	301-390	177-237	541-720	301-390	177-237
13.	Dubhad	541-720	301-390	177-237	541-720	301-390	177-237
14.	Belhari	721-820	391-450	238-300	721-820	391-450	238-300
15.	Reoti	541-720	301-390	177-237	541-720	301-390	177-237
16.	Baria	721-820	391-450	238-300	721-820	391-450	238-300
17.	Murli chapra	721-820	391-450	238-300	721-820	391-450	238-300

(1)    Shallow (0-80 feet), (2) Medium (81-120 feet), and (3) Deep aquifer (above 120 feet).