INDIA: Fluoride in groundwater causes water crisis in 3 Agra villages

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INDIA: Fluoride in groundwater causes water crisis in 3 Agra villages

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Fluoride in groundwater causes water crisis in 3 Agra villages

Three villages in Agra are staring at a water crisis as the fluoride-laced groundwater is causing health issues for the residents who are dependent on it.

India Today - January 14, 2023

By Siraj Qureshi

Fatehpur Sikri and other neighbouring villages in Uttar Pradesh's Agra are facing a groundwater crisis as the water available to them is laced with fluoride.

Residents of these villages have been facing issues as there is either fluoride-laced water or no groundwater at all.

Many have left the village as the only water they can drink is extremely saline.

The gram panchayat Pachgai Kheda, which consists of three small villages, has a population of approximately 2,500 people. A large number of these have been affected by fluoride-laced water. Some of them are bedridden.

Bhagwan Singh, a local resident, told India Today that none of the hand pumps provide drinkable water, and that has been the case for several years now.

At present, efforts are being made to provide drinking water to these villages under the Nirmal Jal Dhara programme of the rural development department.

Dr SK Kalra told India Today that drinking fluoride-laced water weakens bones and causes pain in joints.

"The first effect is on teeth as they become yellow and brittle," he said.

A petition on the water crisis has been filed in the Allahabad High Court, which will hear the matter in April. The court has asked the concerned government departments to appear before it.

He said that RO plants have stopped working as the fluoride content is high.

SOURCE:
https://www.indiatoday.in/cities/agra/s ... 2023-01-14
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