The Environmental Protection Agency, Sindh has found high-level biological contamination in drinking water consumed by the citizens in Karachi that causes various pollution-borne diseases.
In a report released on the occasion of World Water Day, being observed today (March 22), the EPA, Sindh stated that it conducted a random sampling of various areas in Karachi and collected 52 samples from schools, hospitals, housing units, pumping stations, distribution network etc and found that almost all of them deviate from 11 most important WHO standards of drinking water. The samples were analysed at the EPA Laboratory.
The samples were collected from thickly populated areas of the city that include Korangi, Landhi, Malir, Quaidabad, Gulshan-e-Iqbal, Gulstan-e-Johar, Federal B. Area, Garden, Golimar and Lyari. The analysed parameters were PH, TDUs (Total Dissolved Units), TSUs (Total Suspended Units), chloride, chlorine, coliforms, turbidity, colour, sodium, sulphate and sulphide.
The deviation from WHO standards in drinking water quality is causing various diseases like diarrhoea, dysentery, suspected cholera, suspected viral hepatitis, acute respiratory infections, scabies etc.
The report further says that similar situation prevails in entire province as the total number of patients during the month of December 2003 reported in various hospitals of 15 districts of Sindh owing to water-borne diseases was 2,77,509 of them 1,75,325, highest among all, were suffering from acute respiratory infections.
The number of diarrhoea patients was 36,790, dysentery patients 33,737, suspected viral hepatitis 640, cough more than two weeks 6,616, scabies 24,401.
The EPA advised the citizens that water should be boiled at least for 15 to 20 minutes to mitigate some of its adverse effects.