The Daily Star 

 May 18, 2004  





                        Villagers buy drinking water
                        Most tubewells in Nabinagar upazila in Brahmanbaria are 
                        highly arsenic-contaminated: DPHE identifies 216 
                        arsenicosis patients: About five lakh exposed to danger
                        Our Correspondent, Brahmanbaria

                        Unbelievable though, villagers have to buy drinking 
                        water.
                        They buy 10 litres of treated water at Tk 5 from a 
                        private plant at Nabinagar upazila headquarter because 
                        tubewell water is highly arsenic-contaminated. 
                        But they are a microscopic fraction of a population of 
                        48,8650 exposed to danger because groundwater in all the 
                        196 villages except one is highly contaminated with 
                        arsenic, a silent killer.
                        Ashar Alo Bebosaye Samati (hope traders association) 
                        headed by one Bikash Roy has set up the plant. Its lifts 
                        water from nearby Titas river and purifies it with 
                        Potash Alum and Chlorine. It supplies up to 6000 letres 
                        a day.
                        But the buyers do no know how pure the water is. 
                        Md Monir came from a far away village for water. "They 
                        (plant owners) apply the chemicals basing on assumption 
                        and have no tool to measure the ratio", he told this 
                        correspondent at the plant yesterday. 
                        Bikash Roy said they examine the ratio of Chlorine with 
                        a test tube. There is no need to examine the ratio of 
                        Potash Alum as water can not absorb excess quantity of 
                        the chemical, he said.
                        The arsenic contamination has created a crisis of 
                        drinking water in all areas of Nabinagar upazila because 
                        most of the ponds have dried up. At places, people are 
                        taking impure water of the Titas, causing diarrhoea and 
                        other water-borne diseases. 
                        Sources at the DPHE (Public Health and Engineering 
                        Department) said 23,663 tubewells out of the 28068 in 
                        195 villages have been found highly contaminated with 
                        arsenic. Rasulpur village in Natghar union is the only 
                        exception. All the tubewells there are arsenic-free. 
                        A recent DPHE survey detected at least 216 arsenicosis 
                        patients in the upazila. The number is increasing.
                        In 58 villages, there is no tubewell free from arsenic. 
                        The groundwater is severely contaminated in 34 villages. 
                        These include Chander Char, Das Kanda, Sadekpur, 
                        Daponia, Islampur, Kamalpur, Lakhawra, Radhanagor, 
                        Bangaura North, Asrabpur, Pandabnagar, Padmanagor, 
                        Bhatpukur, Kajzlla, Barashikonika, Chalikhula, 
                        Chakrakhukla, Buldibari, Gunpukuria, Bajebi, Bandukhar, 
                        Nasrabari and Ghiara, DPHE sources said.
                        DPHE has marked the affected tubewells with red marks, 
                        forbidding their use. But finding no alternative, people 
                        are drinking arsenic contaminated water from red-marked 
                        tubewells, they said. 
                        Arsenic damages kidney, liver and the nerves system, 
                        leading to death, doctors say.
                        DPHE Sub-assistant Engineer Md Guulam Mastufa Buian at 
                        Nabinagar told this correspondent that he often visits 
                        the private plant but he has no equipment to test the 
                        treated water. Sometimes the owner of the plant shows 
                        him a 'fitness certificate' given by high authorities, 
                        he said.
                        According to the DPHE survey report, arsenic 
                        contaminated water is found at a depth of only 30 
metres.
                        DPHE sources at Brahmanbaria said they have taken up a 
                        plan to sink 125 deep tubewells and dig 37 ring wells in 
                        the affected areas.
                        Besides, the Unicef-assisted Arsenic Mitigation Project 
                        is working on a plan to preserve rainwater for supply. 
                        DPHE Executive Engineer Fazlul Haque at Brahmanbaria 
                        when contacted said a plan has been taken up to mitigate 
                        the problem soon. 
                        Plastic cans kept in a queue for treated water at the 
                        lone treatment plant at Nabinagar upazila headquarter. A 
                        can of water sells at Tk 5. PHOTO: STAR