GURGAON: With spurt in water-borne diseases being reported every day, experts believe the level of contamination in Millennium City’s water has reached alarming levels and is not fit for drinking.

In South Delhi, bordering Gurgaon, one person died and more than three dozen were hospitalized on Wednesday after they reportedly consumed contaminated water. The incident has created panic among the local residents, who blamed authorities for not taking measures to check contamination.

As per the research figures of Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), water contamination is a major problem in the city and almost 40% of the water available for drinking or cooking has high level of fluoride, chlorine and TDS (essential minerals and salts). The desirable amount of TDS ranges between 500 mg per litre and 2,000 mg per litre but the figure in city exceeds 7,000 mg per litre.

Around 70 per cent of city’s water is supplied from under the ground due to which the water table has gone down and has been contaminated due to non-availability of water recharge mechanism.

Bharat Lal Seth, deputy programme manager in water research & advocacy team, CSE said reverse osmosis (RO) facility of water purifier companies does solve the rampant problem but only where high level of TDS is present, and not entirely as it destroys micro minerals of water. And since the sewage is flushed out in open areas, water authorities should resort to measures of avoiding pollution of groundwater.

“Drinking contaminated water high in chlorine and fluoride leads to Fluorosis, which is a major teeth disease resulting from long-term consumption of water with high fluoride levels and is characterized by dental mottling. It occurs especially in young kids, so I always advise them to use toothpaste high in chlorine and a good brand mouthwash regularly. Presence of Flouride in water leads to degradation, brownish discoloration of teeth and feeling of sensation in teeth when drinking or eating hard eatables, mottled enamel and cavity,” said Dr Babita Sangwan, a senior endodontist at Kirti hospital.

“Owing to water contamination several patients suffering from typhoid, gastroenteritis and other stomach problems like diarrhoea. Symptoms of water borne disease include vomiting, sick stomach, skin rashes, respiratory problems, leukemia and these occur by drinking impure water for a long time,” said Dr Neelima Mishra, consultant, internal medicine at Paras hospital.