In the larger sense, Ganga is glorified to be a one-stop point for cleansing any improper deed.   But, is it really mentioned in our religious scriptures in as many certain terms, to float diseased dead bodies into a river that too proclaimed holy, by a large section of society?  This was intriguing and hence began a brief research into the religious and mythological origin of the river Ganga. 

It is believed that the heavenly river Ganga came down to earth to salvage 60,000 dead sons of Raja Sagar who were incidentally killed when they got into the bad-books of Rishi Kapil.  The 60,000 sons were burnt into ashes, by Rishi Kapil’s anger; Raja Sagar struggling for ideas to give his sons a true to Hindu belief salvation was forced to revert back to the Rishi and seek his advice.  On doing so, the Rishi suggested that the only way would be to persuade the heavenly Ganga to come down to earth.  Hence Raja Bhagirath, the descendent, went into deep penance and  successfully persuaded Ganga to come down to earth and wash away the ashes of the 60 000 sons.  Hence she was literally called to purify and clean the earth of the ash. 

Thus originated the Hindu custom of immersing ashes into the river.  But, how did this convert into a malpractice of dumping dead bodies?  That is a million dollar question.  Call it distortion of fact or improvised religious teaching or just plain manipulation to suit one’s need and pocket (burning the body is an expensive affair in today’s context). 

Without getting into the web of grey, one is sure about the fact that whenever this practice must have come into being, the river had lots of water, flowed full and aquatic life flourished. 

But the Ganga is different today; we have played havoc with the ecology, diverted its waters and replenished the same with dirty drain sewage and industrial effluent.  Also, the density of people living along its banks and thereby the number of bodies floated into the river has increased manifold.

River Pandu Dead – Is Kanpur Bothered?
(third article)

 From being a crystal clear river two decades ago, to a black, foul smelling drain as on date, the river Pandu has metamorphosed beyond recognition.  Well, not too long ago, as history stands witness, the same river was the lifeline for South Kanpur.  Surprising! -  considering the river’s deplorable state.  The picture on the ground is stark and self-explanatory – at the Armapur Estate, where river Pandu enters Kanpur; it is a small stream of greenish water.  Being a perennial river with its source traced to a lake in Farukkhabad, Pandu flows down a 120 km stretch to finally drain into the Ganga at Fatehpur.  However, in South Kanpur, when the river leaves the city, it is big black, dirty drain bearing no resemblance to a river.  Alarming indeed!

River Pandu has been poisoned at Kanpur:  the biggest culprit being the Panki Thermal Power plant.  About 2 km into the city, a wide canal of slurry from this power plant joins the river.  Sources estimate that the plant uses around 3,000 tones of coal and churns out 40 tones of fly ash every day. The ash is dumped in a fly ash pond spread over an area of two square kilometer. The slurry overflows from the pond and finds its way into Pandu. 

Besides the slurry, four drains from Kanpur town discharge raw sewage into the river, while one industrial effluent drain from a variety of industries in Dadanagar, Panki area empties into Pandu. 

Void of any freshwater, other than in the monsoons, Pandu has gradually choked.  Worse, a sizable population along its banks (over 50 villages) has lost a vital water source.  Today, the villagers fear even touching the river’s water.  The river has become synonymous with ill-health and trouble.  On venturing into the water by mistake even, they develop boils and rashes on their feet. The toxicity of the water has forced them to depend on groundwater for their water needs. However, industrial pollution has taken its toll on groundwater of the area too. It is apprehended that water up to a depth of around 45 meter might contain dissolved ammonia, nickel, chromium and fluoride. In such a situation, people are left with using privately owned or/and government-installed hand-pumps which draw water from a depth of roughly 100 feet.

Besides drinking water needs, their livelihood is threatened as well.  Every year post monsoon, the river leaves a thick deposit of fly ash on its banks, contaminating their agricultural lands.  Gita Devi is a disgruntled farmer from Meharban Singh Ka Poorva.  She has been using the Pandu water for irrigation and has now paid a huge price for it.  A portion of her land is now rendered fallow.  As she points to a handful of soil and explains “every year in the monsoon, the river swells; and later after the monsoons, my land turns grey.  Year after year, this kept happening and today, I am unable to grow anything in this part of my field.”  Her plight is understandable, considering that each year, Pandu blankets a large tract of agricultural land with fly ash.  The same happens in the summer months as farmers use the ash-laden, rich in mercury water for irrigation.  These large deposits of slurry have impacted the productivity adversely. Buran Singh, another village elder from the area went further to add that the grey substance (fly ash slurry) makes the soil less porous and impedes aeration as a result of which lands turn fallow. Buran Singh, belonging to the Kahar community recollects “earlier, the land along the Pandu river was very fertile. We were leased out the land to grow vegetables every year. But today nobody wants this land.”

Now arises the pertinent question:  can the river Pandu ever be revived?  Experts point out that this will not be possible until the polluting sources (slurry, industrial effluents, and sewage) are plugged. As on date we do not have any plan (even on paper) to treat the slurry from the Thermal Power Plant.  Even GAP (Ganga Action Plan) has failed to take notice of this.  GAP Phase II only talks about treating the sewage mingling with Pandu.  However, nothing noteworthy has changed on the ground, despite the fact that GAP Phase II is being implemented since 2000. 

While on paper, the industrial effluents are to be treated at the industry level or at a central level and then let into the river, nothing to this effect has been noticed.  A raw cocktail of chemicals (effluent) is freely let into the river. 

Friends in Sorrow – The Ganga and Kanpur
(second article)

Consider this:  the Ganga is the country’s most respected and holy river housing more than 37% of the country’s population in its fertile basin.  It drains into 8 states, watering 47% of the total irrigated area and has been geographically, historically, and culturally significant for centuries now.  On the other hand, Kanpur one of the many settlements on the Ganga’s banks, feeding off the river, has now grown to be the ninth largest industrial town of the country.  They both (the Ganga and Kanpur) have shared a relationship for centuries now – one that saw the former contributing clean, volumes of water and the latter giving back dirty volumes of untreated sewage and other industrial effluents.  What does one say about this relationship? 

Well, whatever be its name, the relationship has resulted in the following:  the Ganga ecosystem has suffered severe ecological imbalances with pollutants far exceeding its self-purification capacity.  There has been periodic ‘fish-die’ (large scale death of fish due to low oxygen level and toxic substances in water), heavy metal residues have been found in cow/buffalo milk, (as they drink the polluted Ganga water) vegetables (grown downstream and supplied to most of Kanpur) and ground water (as untreated chemical wastes are dumped into landfills), and yes, the Ganga has been reduced to a big black drain as she leaves Kanpur.  On the other hand, Kanpur has prospered (money-wise at least, though of course the gap between the rich and poor has widened) and tanneries have flourished as they are now exporting leather to several European countries.  But the big bucks have come at a very heavy price indeed:  Recently, the TIME magazine claimed Kanpur is the 7th most polluted city in the world.  The city has not only contributed to the murder of the river Ganga (along with many others both upstream and downstream), but has bargained for a degraded environment – poor ambient air quality, degraded lands, contaminated water sources, not to forget the poor health of its citizens (rampant cancers, TB, other disorders caused by heavy pollution).  Infact, today even clean drinking water has become a luxury that only the elite can afford. 

The Ganga is no longer the same; however her contribution to the city of Kanpur has remained unchanged – role wise at least. The river is still the principle source of water, for both drinking and irrigation.  However, every onlooker agrees that the river has changed.  So, let’s start by understanding the most often used phrase – “the Ganga has changed”.  The change has been both qualitative and quantitative.  As Gangaram Tiwari, an old panda at Sarsaiyya Ghat articulated “Earlier there was a huge amount of water in the river.  Now there is hardly any water left.  Infact, during the lean period (Nov- June), in some parts, one can walk through the river.  The Ganga has left the Ghats, and what we have instead, is the backflow from the nearby nallah (dark, dirty smelling, sewage and effluent mixed wastewater) at the ghats.”  The reason for this is simple to comprehend:  with most of its water being diverted through canals for irrigation (upstream) – upper Ganga canal at Haridwar, lower Ganga canal at Narora - the fresh waters are diverted.  The fresh waters are now being replaced by contaminated city waste water and industrial waste water.  Thus the river has changed.  So, isn’t anybody doing anything about this? 

Of course they are, and they have been since 1985 ever-since the Ganga Action Plan was conceived.  Started in 1986 as Ganga Action Plan (GAP) by the late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, it was later titled the National River Action Plan. The GAP had austere objectives – abetting pollution, improving water quality, conserving and restoring biodiversity and developing an integrated river basin management approach. 

UP Jal Nigam was identified as a primary implementing agency for GAP in UP and Kanpur was roped in as a key player as it contributed heavily to the pollution level.  Nearly Rupees 670 million was invested in GAP Phase 1 at Kanpur.  Sewage treatment plants, Intermediate sewage pumping stations, Chrome recovery plants at tanneries, electric crematoria etc. were set up.  Another Rupees 600 million has been spent in an incomplete GAP Phase II.

The plan was great on paper; however, there was a huge gap in its implementation. Going by the plan on paper, the river should have transformed by now.  But sadly, even after successful (or rather so claimed) implementation of the Ganga Action Plan, Phase 1, and an on-going Phase II, the river has remained as polluted and the situation has only worsened. 

Well, so does anybody care?  Apart from popular public campaigns, a proactive, concerned Judiciary has been involved for the last 2 decades to save the Ganga.  Despite various judicial pronouncements nothing has changed on the ground. As on date, two cases, one filed by a resident of Kanpur and another filed by a group in Varanasi are being heard at both the Allahabad High Court and the Supreme Court. 

Against this backdrop, one may wonder, is the pollution in the Ganga at Kanpur affecting its citizens?    Most definitely yes, as residents in Kanpur use the river water for drinking and other household purposes.  River water is also being used to grow vegetables (vegetables grown in the riverbed using polluted Ganga water are supplied to most of Kanpur) and our cattle (responsible for milk supplies) drink and bathe in the same river.  The results are already showing.  Public health experts point out that incidences of cancer have risen alarmingly in the last two decades.  And this is not surprising, considering that most pollutants (besides sewage) are known carcinogens (heavy metals like Chromium, Arsenic, pesticides etc.). 

The river’s ill-health is impacting us:  you can either chose to ignore it or face it and contribute to efforts directed at reversing the situation.  From being called ‘Manchester of the East” due to the large number of industries it supported, Kanpur is today a veritable environmental disaster.  The city is dying and so is the Ganga – united in grief again.  They have traveled a long way; the journey for both has been an endearing one.  One can only hope that they see light at the end of the tunnel.

How safe is the water we drink?
(first article)

Ever-since I landed in Kanpur, the water I drink has intrigued me.  Tinted with colour, occasionally odoured, and sometimes with foreign particles afloat, the water continues to intrigue me.  Hence I embarked on a journey to discover its antecedents.  How safe is the water we drink? Where is drinking water for Kanpur sourced from?

“Kanpur city averages 600 mld of water consumption.  This consumption is met through Bhaironghat intake point (from main river Ganga), the Ganga canal, and groundwater sources (hand pumps and tubewells)” explained Rakesh Jaiswal from Eco-Friends, adding “this makes the Ganga important and integral to Kanpur”. 

I was soon on my way to the river Ganga, hoping to get a glimpse of the intake point at the river and the Ganga canal.  As I drove through the city, my mind was scanning bits of conversation I had had on the previous day about pollution in the river Ganga.  Honestly, I was skeptical and I had reason to be considering that over two decades of environmental activism, judicial intervention and government action, the Ganga has remained a polluted river without an iota of change on the ground.  Eclipsed with this thought, I stopped at the Ganga barrage.  Overwhelming indeed – on one hand a huge mass of water, and on the other, a huge basin – barren banks with a visibly shrunk Ganga flowing past the barrage. My informed companion, Dixitji pointed to that huge mass of water and proclaimed “that is the Ganga that enters Kanpur”.  Magnificent I thought and innocently asked, so is where the water for the city is sourced from? He quickly added “not exactly from here but from the Bhaironghat intake point.”

We headed to the intake point next.  But the scene was not as engaging.  Firstly, the Ganga was way into the land – somewhere in the middle having meandered on her banks.  Walking past heavy and noisy machinery, and damp undulating soil, we reached the waters. Muddy, smelly and what can I say about the dozens defecating along the river – we were forced to move on for obvious reasons.  So that’s where our water (the bulk of it for Kanpur) gets sourced from. 

Alarmed or more rightly concerned, we sped away to where the water was heading from the intake point – Jal Sansthan (waterworks department).  My mind was heavily circuited – is this the water am drinking everyday?  I just hope the water is getting treated – or else there is a huge disaster in the waiting. 

Bingo – we hit upon the Lab-Incharge at Jal Sansthan.  A busy lady, definitely with a job on hand I thought.  Meeting her was like balm on a burning wound. “Kanpur gets ‘C’ grade water; this implies that the drinking water source has to be treated conventionally only to be followed by disinfection.  So by definition, we agree that the water is expected to have pollutants to a certain limit” said Dr. Anita Bajpai, as she walked us around different treatment tanks, adding, “however, what is of concern is once the monsoon ends and the water recedes, the pollutants get concentrated and manifest in greater proportions thus rendering the role of treatment very crucial.  Upstream, town sewage, effluents from sugar factories and distilleries, the sludge from katha factories etc. is freely let into the river.  We are facing a problem with colour here in Kanpur.”  We were later shown the three stage purification process that the water undergoes – the water is first treated with Ferric Alum to coagulate the impurities and micro organisms, which then flock together and settle at the bottom by virtue of being heavier than the water.  Next, it is decanted and subjected to rapid gravity filtration and finally chlorinated.  Was I reassured?  Well, partly yes, but not till heard her next comment “but this kind of pollution can not go away. Today the pollution has increased so much, that treatment costs have risen alarmingly.  Let’s take colour for instance.  Drinking water according to standard has to be colourless.  But upstream due to the sugar distilleries and the katha factories, we are getting brown tinged water at our pick up point.  This substantially increases after the monsoon as there is no dilution in the river.  To counter this we have to add 15 tonnes of Ferric Alum as against 5 tonnes that was being added normally.  This pushes our purification costs and the budget gets imbalanced.”  My mind quickly questioned “and how long can an organization (more so a government one) sustain a strained budget?”  So that does leave a narrow grey passage – what will happen if this colour in the river water increases? This is indeed a grave possibility considering the unabated pollution.  Best left unanswered I guess.

We went on to discuss further, the ground water resources in the city.  I was tempted to ask her,   so does that mean, we are better off drinking water from borewells or tubewells, considering the high levels of pollution in the Ganga.  She retaliated with a quick and emphatic ‘NO’,  elaborating “I tell everybody that they are better off drinking the piped water supply rather than the ground water, because we have noted that ground water in Kanpur city is even more polluted”. 

The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) first identified four areas (Panki, Jajmau, Noraiakheda and Rakhimadi) with ground water pollution problems way back in 1996.  The ground water was found to be highly alkaline; there were substantial amounts of chemicals/pesticide residues in the water and even fluorides were detected.  This did raise an alarm.  But as with everything else, the alarm subsided and life moved on, people continued to drink this water.  As Dr. Bajpai says “we get samples from across the city and invariably, if not anything else, nitrite (result of contamination from sewage – fecal contamination) is very commonly detected.  I can very certainly claim that nearly 60% of Kanpur’s ground water will test positive for nitrite.”  This is an escalated risk to my mind – as lakhs of people in Kanpur city drink water from bore wells assuming that it is an uncontaminated source.  More so, it makes it worse since nitrite is not visible to the naked eye. 

Our ground water is not safe.  But why have reached this situation?  I wondered. 

The reasons are many – the most obvious of them all is the industrial nature of Kanpur city.  Loaded with industries and plagued with faulty waste disposal practices, the city’s ground water had been infiltrated.  Hazardous chemicals such as Chromium, Lead and even Mercury have leached into ground water resources making it unfit for drinking.  The second reason for poor ground water quality are our unplanned landfill sites.  As Dr. Bajpai opined “if you fill a site with garbage or any other waste, top it with soil and then sell it as domestic or commercial property, the person buying it is in for big trouble; as all that you will get when you dig a borewell, is waste, more hazardous waste and this can only increase.  So the buyer is doomed. You can virtually do nothing about the water quality even if you spend lakhs on it”.  Problems and problems galore!!!
 
So, here’s where we stand:  at the end of the journey, I am unsettled.  While I tend to believe at times that the piped water supply is best, my mind quickly projects the areas in the city which do not have piped water supply (Kanpur South).  A huge population in Kanpur is dependent on ground water.  Even areas which have piped water supply, residents tend to use ground water as well, citing erratic supply and poor quality as one of the reasons and thereby tagging it undependable.  Are they even aware of the potential threat?  One doesn’t know.  But yes, this story I hope strikes a chord with all concerned.

Water is an elixir of life.  But be sure you are drinking it safe. Please make sure that even at the household level, you are subjecting the water to some purification process (boiling for example or using chlorine tablets that are cheap and available off the counter with your nearby chemist) – just be doubly sure that your water is safe.