Agra wakes up to dry taps, dead fish, fear of epidemic

It was a horrifying morning for those living near the River Yamuna. Millions of fish — dead and dying — covered its banks, while tonnes of dead fish floated in its waters. Rumours started doing the rounds — the first one that the Yamuna, the city’s only source of water supply, had been poisoned. The rumours intensified when the Corporation stopped water supply to the entire city early in the morning.

Preliminary investigation points towards heightened levels of chemical pollution in the river, which reduced the dissolved oxygen content of the water, killing the fish. Agra’s District Magistrate Mahesh Gupta said he had ordered the water supply be stopped to prevent the poison from spreading.

General Manager, Water Corporation, A.K. Dubey, said the report on toxicity did not indicate the levels of toxins were high enough to kill fish in such large volumes. Chief Medical Officer, Agra Dr L.B. Prasad said the water can cause an epidemic of diarrhoea if the dead fish were not removed.