There’s water here but villagers drink it with a prayer on their lips

Ask officials and the answer is straightforward. “The water filter and sedimentation tank are not working so we simply supply raw water without any treatment from this source to kitchen taps. No one knows what they are drinking,” says Parkal Mandal’s Executive Officer C H Papaharan Rao.

It doesn’t require a lab test to tell them the water isn’t fit for drinking but the Mandal does send samples occasionally to the Integrated Water Quality Monitoring Laboratory at Hanamkonda, 40 km away. The problem is the lab only has a water sample collector and a geologist to test samples.

“We don’t have a microbiologist and chemical analyst. The water sample collector, who has been trained, usually tests for TDS, fluoride and nitrate content. A simple hydrogen sulphide vial test reveals presence of bacteria or not. We don’t have enough sample collectors too. Usually the villagers themselves bring the water samples in soft drink bottles,” says executive engineer, rural water supply, Hanamkonda division, V Lingiah.

Between January 12 and March 20, the lab tested 11 samples from as many villages sent by either sarpanches or water supply engineers. Prabhujit Busari, a chemist, who was posted at Hanamkonda for nearly two decades and was transferred last month to Hyderabad, says the Hanamkonda lab takes the load of testing water samples from all villages of Warangal district. “The lab badly needs a microbiologist, chemist and chemical analyst. For pre and post-monsoon testing, the lab hires them on contract basis as a temporary measure,” Busari says.

Under the Rajiv Gandhi Drinking Water Mission, the Centre releases funds to states for procurement of field-testing kits, augmenting lab facilities and raising awareness.

“Rs 19 crore has been earmarked for procurement of field water testing kits, training and HRD and dissemination of information. The Rs 5 crore for augmenting district-level laboratories after the AP government sent a proposal has been approved but the funds have not been provided yet,” says A Sateesh, Senior Chemist of AP State Referral Institute, who is in charge of distributing the kits and training of personnel.

So it’s no surprise that the Hanamkonda lab is filled with plastic soft drink bottles in which village sarpanches or gram panchayat staff brought water samples with names of village and water source written with sketch pens on them.

Water-testing field kits were supposed to be given to Warangal district’s 1,014 gram panchayats and 51 mandals. But only 147 kits have been given so far in gram panchayats while of the 51 mandals, 21 received one each.

A visit to the Mulugu water testing lab, the only other lab in the district, reveals that it ceased to function long ago. “We send all samples to Hanamkonda lab only. Mulugu lab has no facilities,” says its chemist Rageshwara Rao. “Most of the necessary equipment like incubator, stabilizer are not there. There is no microbiologist, chemical analyst.”

“We have not received enough funds to augment the lab facilities and provide the testing kits,” says Superintending Engineer, Warangal, K Aruna. “We received a budget of Rs 6 lakh for 2007-08 only in October. We are utilizing it to procure more kits and hire people. This year there is no sign of any funds as yet. We are short of chemicals and distilled water in the two laboratories. Water testing is done only two times in a year. When required chemists, microbiologists and lab technicians are all hired on contract. In spite of this, in the last few months we have been conducting tests as and when possible. A number of open wells and bore wells have been marked ‘red’ by us as the water was not potable. Villagers now use the water only for washing clothes,” says Aruna.

But not all villages are lucky to know the quality of water they are drinking and even if they do, they have no choice.

The AP government has so far been able to provide only 3,154 field water-testing kits in the entire state against a requirement of 22,000 kits though Rs 19 crores funds have been released by the Centre. Ajay Mishra, Secretary, Rural Water Supply, says: “In the second round we plan to provide more kits. Tenders have been invited and the process is on. Training will also be provided to sarpanches how to use the kits.”

A water sample of Kothur village’s “pedda cheruvu” (big lake) under Wardhanpet sub-division in Rajaparthy Mandal, showed presence of bacteria but villagers have no choice but to use the water. In Parkal Mandal, more then 20,000 people drink the murky water without knowing that it is untreated because they have no other source. “Either we buy purified water which costs Rs 10 per 20 litres or we boil this tap water and drink. There is no option,” says G Sarojana.

“The situation is the same in the entire Narsampet area and villages like Thadavai, Ghanpur, Devanpalli, Zafargadh, Dharamsagar villages where fluoride, nitrate and iron content in drinking water is very high,” says Hanamkonda lab’s former chemist Prabhujit Busari.

The Rajiv Gandhi National Drinking Water Mission defines as safe drinking water if it is free from bacteria contamination, chemical contamination viz. fluoride, iron, arsenic, nitrate, and brackishness in excess or beyond permissible limits.

In the neighbouring Karimnagar district which has 2,200 villages, only 165 field testing kits have been given so far. “The district has two labs at Karimnagar and Manthani but the facilities and equipment provided leaves a lot to be desired. We don’t have a microbiologist and chemist. During pre and post monsoon testings we hire them on contract. We have so far received 165 field testing kits. We are making do with them. Next year probably more would be released with increased budget and then we will provide to all the villages,” says O Rajalingham, Superintending Engineer, Rural Water Supply.