Fluoride Action Network

Jagalur: People “fall sick often due to high fluoride content in borewell water”

Source: OneIndia News | December 28th, 2017
Location: India

A reserved constituency for Scheduled Tribes, Jagalur is in Davangere district. Jagalur has emerged as a strong Congress bastion with back to back victories for the party.

The constituency is said to have gotten its name from a saint, Jogappa.

People of the constituency fall sick often due to high fluoride content in borewell water in and around Jagalur.

In 2016, villagers in Bilichodu and other villages in Jagalur taluk complained of mouth ulcers, boils on the skin, tooth decay acne and other problems related to water contamination. The problem is so huge that doctors in and around could easily identify who is from Jagalur with one look at their teeth. People here suffer from skeletal fluorosis due to continued consumption of water with high fluoride content.

The arid land is heavily dependent on groundwater after surface water bodies are sucked dry during summers. Imam Sab, who served as an education minister in the period of Maharaja of Mysore Sri Krisnaraja Wodeyer IV is recognised as one of the primary contributors to the development of the constituency.

H P Rajesh from the Congress is the current MLA and he won against SV Ramachandra from KJP.

*Original article, titled Karnataka elections: Jagalur Assembly constituency, online at https://www.oneindia.com/feature/karnataka-elections-jagalur-assembly-constituency-2610086.html