According to the official data, only 18 percent water samples were found complying with the PSQCA drinking water standards and considered safe for drinking purpose. The Pakistan Council for Research in Water Resources (PCRWR) carried out the survey under National Water Quality Monitoring Programme (NWQMP) in 24 districts. Some 20 percent of their total villages (2,807 villages) of 1567 union councils from their 80 tehsils were selected for water quality analysis.
According to the report, in rural areas of the federal capital, 150 water sources were analysed, out of which, 61 (41 percent) water sources were safe while 89 (59 percent) were evaluated as unsafe due to prevailing bacteriological contamination (40 percent) as well as higher values of Nitrate (33 percent) and Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) 11 percent than PSQCA drinking water quality standards.
The report showed that in Attock, 387 water sources (89 percent) were unsafe due to the prevailing bacteriological contamination (85 percent) as well as higher level of Turbidity (13 percent), Iron five percent, Sulfate seven percent, Sodium 18 percent, Nitrate 19 percent and TDS 19 percent than PSQCA drinking water standards.
In Bahawalpur, 1,132 (93 percent) sources (out of total 1,220) were found unsafe due to presence of microbial contamination (50 percent) and higher values of Arsenic (1 percent), Turbidity (31 percent), Iron (37 percent), Sulfate (28 percent), Sodium (56 percent), Chloride (37 percent) and TDS (585). In Faisalabad, 88 (10 percent) sources out of 885 were found safe and the remaining 797 (90 percnet) sources were unsafe due to bacteriological contamination (4 percent), excessive TDS (71 percent), Turbidity (6 percent), Sulphate (40 percent), Sodium (73 percent), Chlorides (49 percent) and Fluoride (16 percent) than permissible levels of PSQCA.
The report revealed that in Gujranwala, 602 (75 percent) sources were evaluated as unsafe due to bacteriological contamination (68 percent) and higher values of Nitrate (three percent), TDS (12 percent), Turbidity (2 percent), Sodium (15 percent) and Iron (12 percent).
Only 203 (25 percent) sources were evaluated as safe for drinking with respect to PSQCA standards.
As far as Gujrat is concerned, 942 (84 percent) sources out of 1,117 were found unsafe due to Bacteriological contamination (78 percent), excessive levels of Turbidity (14 percent) and Iron (3 percent), TDS ad Sodium (13 percent). In Kasur, 530 (79 percent) sources were found unsafe due to Bacteriological Contamination (68 percent) and higher TDS (32 percent), Arsenic (five percent), Sodium (34 percent), Iron (seven percent), Fluoride (18 percent), Sulfate (12 percent) and Nitrate (3 percent) that PSQCA Drinking Water Standards.
Lahore has shown an alarming situation of drinking water contamination as 180 (69 percent) of its total monitored sources were supplying unsafe water due to prevalence of Bacteriological (34 percent), TDS (37 percent) and Arsenic (seven percent) contaminations.
A similar situation was found in Multan, where 494 (94 percent) sources were found to be unsafe due to Bacteriological contamination (48 percent) and higher values of chemical contaminants ie Arsenic (two percent), Iron (81 percent), Turbidity (55 percent) and TDS (22 percent) than PSQCA Drinking Water Standards.
In Rawalpindi, out of 1,125 sources, 818 were found to be contaminated by Bacteriological contamination (73 percent), elevated values of TDS (15 percent), Nitrate (29 percent), Sodium (18 percent) and Turbidity (14 percent).
In Sargodha, only 96 (12 percent) sources, out of total of 834 locations, were found to be safe for drinking purpose and the major causes of contamination were Bacteriological (77 percent), higher levels of Arsenic (one percent), Sodium (37 percent), Chlorides (16 percent), Sulfate (12 percent), TDS (33 percent), Nitrate (6 percent) and Fluoride (7 percent) than PSQCA Drinking
Water Standards.
A similar situation was prevailing in Sheikhupura, where 707 (65 percent) sources were supplying unsafe water to the public mainly due to the presence of Bacteriological Contamination (44 percent), excessive levels of Iron (10 percent), Sodium (29 percent) and TDS (26 percent).
In Sialkot, only 672 (45 percent) sources out of 1,485 were supplying safe water and the rest have shown excessive levels of Bacteriological Contamination (46 percent), Turbidity (five percent) and TDS (eight percent). The overall data analysis of Punjab showed that 79 percent water samples were found to be unsafe, crossing the permissible limits of PSQCA and only 21 percent samples were within the PSQCA safe limits.
In the rural areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, four districts were monitored, which covered 240 villages and 6 tehsils. Out of a total 365 sources, only one percent sources of Abbottabad were supplying safe water and the rest were found to be polluted with bacteriological contamination (97 percent), higher levels of Nitrate (22 percent), Iron (27 percent) and turbidity (nine percent) than PSQCA Drinking Water Standards.
In Mangora, 93 percent samples were evaluated as unfit due to the prevalence of faecal contamination (83 percent), excessive levels of Turbidity (17 percent) whereas the remaining seven percent were found to be safe. In Mardan, out of 285 sources, 227 samples (80 percent) were found to be unsafe due to bacteriological contamination (74 percent) and high levels of Turbidity (15 percent) and Nitrate (13 percent) concentration than PSQCA Drinking Water Standards. Peshawar, the capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, has indicated 97 percent of the unsafe water sources due to Bacteriological contamination (97 percent) and excessive TDS (six percent).
Data analysis of 12,000 water samples of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has revealed that 93 percent water samples were unsafe and only seven percent samples were found to be within the safe limits prescribed by PSQCA. In rural areas of four districts of Balochistan 298 villages of 54 union councils and 12 tehsils were monitored.
The official data revealed that in Khuzdar, all 1,090 sources were found to be unsafe due to bacteriological contamination (100 percent), faecal contamination by EColi (90 percent), higher values of Nitrate (5 percent) and Iron (57 percent) than PSQCA Drinking Water Standards.
In Loralai, 100 percent water sources were found unsafe because of bacteriological contamination (100 percent), excessive Nitrate (84 percent), Fluoride (53 percent), TDS (14 percent) and Turbidity (24 percent) than PSQCA permissible limits. In Quetta, 89 percent samples were found unsafe, mainly due to bacteriological Contaminants (89 percent) and excessive Fluoride (18 percent).
