25 Feb 2008, 0200 hrs IST,Pankaj Shah,TNN


LUCKNOW: High concentration of arsenic has been detected in the groundwater of 16 districts of the state.

The Arsenic Task Force, comprising doctors and experts from UP Jal Nigam, have found that the presence of poisonous metal in these areas is as high as 50 micrograms per litre. The World Health Organisation (WHO) considers 10 micrograms per litre as the safe `level'.

These districts are Varanasi, Pilibhit, Shahjahanpur, Ballia, Chandauli, Ghazipur, Shravasti, Balrampur, Siddharth nagar, Kushinagar, Maharajganj, Lakhimpur Kheri, Bahraich and Mau. Interestingly, all these districts are situated on the banks of either Ganga or Gomati.

Speaking at a regional conference on `Safe Drinking Water in Rural Areas: Community Based Approaches,' here on Sunday, Dr MZ Idris, a member of the task force, said that a large number of blocks of affected districts are situated on the banks of Ganga.

Dr Idris, head of community medicine department at Chhatrapati Shahuji Maharaj Medical University (CSMMU), said that the menace was found in blocks that have come up over sediments left by the river after it deviated from its course.
 

http://timesofindia .indiatimes. com/Lucknow/ Arsenic__ contaminating_ groundwater/ articleshow/ 2810685.cms

       Article Submitted by Mr.Shaheer Khan (http://shaheer.tripod.com)