Around 74 percent of the drinking water samples picked from various sources across Kashmir have been found contaminated with “microbes”, official data has revealed.
In Kashmir, as part of its drinking water surveillance, 473 samples were lifted for testing from January to July this year.
The contaminations, as per the data include bacteria and other organisms that cause diseases such as gastroenteritis, typhoid and acute diarrheal diseases.
In Srinagar, the quality of drinking water “seems better” and out of 39 samples tested, only 08 were found contaminated.
However, even in this small sample size, significant contaminations were found.
Out of six samples tested in Bandipora, five were found to be contaminated.
As per the comprehensive report on state of diseases afflicting the world, published in prestigious Lancet in September 2017, infectious diseases, especially water-borne diseases and those resulting from poor hygiene are still a major cause of illness in J&K, along with other states in India.
The latest survey has put a question mark over quality of water people in Kashmir have access to.
He said that due to old and dilapidated pipelines, contaminations easily found their way into water.
He added that with new schemes, such as national rural drinking water program, there would be “an overhaul” of water supply.