BALURGHAT: The residents of South Dinajpur’s Kumarganj Block are all set to get fluoride-free drinking water in their homes owing to a project by the Public Health Engineering (PHE) department shortly.
A fund of Rs 215 crore has already been allocated for this project. About 46,000 families will benefit from this project. The sub-surface water will be filtered and piped free-of-cost by installing filters 10 meters below the Atreyee River. The department aims to complete the work by December.
According to an official source of the PHE department, in several areas of Kumarganj Block, 2.5 mg or 3 mg of fluoride was found in one litre of underground water, which is much more than the permissible limit. Once this project is commissioned, the residents of Kumarganj will get a supply of safe drinking water.
Shubhabrata Kar, an official of PHE department said: “Kumarganj Block is a fluoride-prone area. Residents will get fluoride-free water once this Rs 215 crore project is completed.”
According to the PHE survey, more than 2.5 mg per litre of fluoride was found in the drinking water used by common people in Gangarampur, Kumarganj and Tapan blocks while this amount is more than 1.5 mg of fluoride per litre of water in Kushmandi and Banshihari blocks. The permissible amount is below 1.5 mg. High content of fluoride results in health hazards, including dental and skeletal Fluorosis.
Fluoride-free water is already being supplied to residents in Tapan and Gangarampur. As per the scheme, water will be pumped from the Atreyee River and will be sent to the water treatment plant. Two separate water treatment plants will be constructed at Dhadalpara and Sahajatpur in Kumarganj Block to treat that water. Water retention reservoirs will be set up at 17 places in the block. From these reservoirs, water will be supplied to the villages through pipes. If water is drawn from the ground level, it will be defluoridated with the help of advanced equipment.