Polluted drinking water in Konaseema canals gives local residents jitters

Rajamahendravaram: In the wake of unknown illness in Helapuri, the people in East Godavari district are expressing concern over the dirty water flowing in the canals of Central and Eastern Deltas of the district.

The 2,400km-long canals in the two deltas are highly polluted due to the apathy and lethargy of Pollution Control Board (PCB) and the Water Resources Department (WRD). As a result, the people are afraid to use the water. Sadly, they have no other choice.

The people are using canal water for cultivation as well as for drinking purpose. Village panchayats which have jurisdiction over the canals are not taking any action against the persons or industries, which are dumping waste into the canals.

Surprisingly, some panchayats are also dumping the waste on canal bunds which are slipping into the canals. The water flows into the canals from River Godavari which is also polluted in many areas and the industries along the river are releasing their effluents into the river. Interestingly, the Clean

Godavari project has been kept in cold storage for the last many years.

According to sources, canals are highly polluted at 175 points in the two deltas, as per a survey conducted by the WRD recently.

The canal water is being polluted because of industrial effluents, waste being dumped by the poultry farms, houses, hotels, aqua tanks, rice mills and others.

Many poultry farms, hotels are situated all along the canals in Konaseema area along with Anaparthi, Biccavolu, Kadiyam, Dwarapudi, Samalkot and Kakinada areas.

The canals in Konaseema area fall under the central delta and those from Dowleswaram to Kakinada come under the eastern delta.