Rohtak: Eighty seven villages spread over nine districts of the state have high concentration of fluoride in drinking water, as per information provided by the Public Health Engineering department.

The information was sought by Subhash, RTI activist and convener of Haryana Suchna Adhikar Manch. According to information, Jind district has 27 such villages where concentration of fluoride in drinking water causes several ailments to local residents. A total of 11 villages of Jind block, 1 of Julana block, 4 of Pillukhera block, 9 of Safidon block, and 2 of Ucchana block have high concentration of fluoride in drinking water, which is unfit for human consumption. The permissible limit of fluoride in water is 1mg/litre, while the fluoride in these villages is 3.8mg/litre. Not only fluoride, but TDS and chloride level in one Jind district village is ten times higher.

In Mahendergarh district, there are 17 villages with high concentration of fluoride, which includes six villages of Ateli block, four of Kanina, four of Mahendergarh block, two of Sihma, and one of Satnali block of the district, which has fluoride above the permissible limits. In Rewari district, there are 16 such villages, Gurugram has 9 such villages, Sirsa has 4, Kaithal 4, Panipat and Sonipat 1 village each. Dubal village of Kaithal district has three times higher fluoride concentration at 3.32 mg/litre, while Kheri Sheru village has 5.8 mg/litre fluoride concentration in drinking water, which is way higher than the permissible limit. In Palwal, there are eight villages with a high fluoride level.

RTI activist Subhash told TOI he had sought information of fluoride level in Haryana villages of the past five years, but the department failed to provide him the detailed information. Raising a query, Subhash said it was quite strange to believe how the said department makes arrangements of alternative sources of drinking water for the local population, when it lacks the comparative data to analyse the groundwater situation.

A senior doctor at PGIMS Rohtak said “High concentration of fluoride could be one of the chief reasons for oral health problems, like dental fluorosis in the region, where local population has to depend on groundwater. He said other issues relating to fluoride could create problems related to arthritis and other serious issues in people, including children and women.

*Original article online at https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/gurgaon/drinking-water-has-high-fluoride-content-in-87-haryana-villages-rti-query/articleshow/72285498.cms

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