Abstract

Metal Toxicity in Underground Drinking Water at Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh, India

Author(s): Gaurav Kumar Rastogi and D. K. Sinha

Five different underground drinking water samples were collected during the year 2006 from different India Mark II hand pumps of public places at Moradabad (Uttar Pradesh, India). Nine different trace metals in all the water sample were estimated by ICP-AES technique using Varian Liberty II ICPOES and the data was compared with drinking water quality standards prescribed by W.H.O. for trace metals. The drinking water was found to be excessively contaminated with manganese as well as iron invariably at all the sites of study. The water was deficient of magnesium, a micro-nutrient at all the sites except at site No. IV and V. Lead and cadmium metal concentration was within desirable limits, however, copper was found to be absent at all the sites except at site No. III, where it was below the toxic limit. The drinking water is not contaminated with three toxic metals- chromium, cobalt and nickel as they were found to be below the detection limit and reported as ND. People exposed to waters of contaminated drinking water sites are prone to health hazards of metal toxicity and water quality management is urgently needed in the catchment area of study.