Contamination levels drop in Indira Gandhi canal, water supply in Raj still affected

Water supply to parts of northern and western Rajasthan continues to remain affected as the water sourced from the Indira Gandhi Canal is still unfit for drinking despite a drop in contamination levels, officials said.

The water was contaminated after molasses spillover from a sugar mill into Beas river in Punjab.

The drinking water supply has reduced from 50 Mld per day to 15 Mld per day in Sriganganagar city as we are not using the canal water for supply due to contamination, Vinod Jain, the superintendent engineer (additional charge) of Public Health and Engineering Department told PTI.

He said the water was being supplied on alternate days.

The situation was similar in Hanumangarh.

Superintendent Engineer PHED (Hanumangarh) Amar Chand Gehlot said 5 Mld water was being supplied against the regular quota of 13 Mld.

We have not started water supply from the canal as the water is not potable. A team of experts has come from Jaipur for the water testing, he said.

Though there is an improvement in the quality of water, still it is not worth supplying to public, he said.

Officials said the Indira Gandhi canal, the main source of drinking water n the region, enters Rajasthan through Hanumangarh district.

The contamination during peak summer had affected the residents of Hanumangarh, Sriganganagar, Bikaner, Jodhpur, Jaisalmer and other districts.