Chemical Pollution

Rivers, lakes, ponds and streams – natural freshwater ecosystems are a precious resource because of the rich biodiversity they support and the valuable ecosystem services they provide.

A new study by the Delhi-based environment NGO Toxics Link reveals the presence of microplastics in all samples collected from the river at Haridwar, Kanpur and Varanasi.

While freshwater ecosystems in India are known to harbour rich biodiversity, their health is being increasingly challenged in recent years. And the East Kolkata Wetlands, one of the important Ramsar sites in India, and the largest wastewater fed aquaculture systems in the world that provide fish and support paddy and vegetable cultivation, are no exception.

A drinking water quality, testing, monitoring and surveillance framework was released by the Ministry of Jal Shakti in March 2021 as a part of the government’s flagship Nal se Jal scheme.

Yamuna pollution: Delhi Govt bans soaps and detergents not meeting latest BIS standards

An analysis was done by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) of winter pollution (until January 26, 2021) in India’s five southern states - a vulnerable but poorly monitored region from the air quality perspective.

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Air pollution killed 16.7 lakh Indians and led to an economic loss of Rs. 

Rivers are revered and considered holy since times immemorial in India and mass bathing in some rivers is an age-old ritual. A holy dip and a holy sip of the river waters are considered to be a highly purifying. But is the dip really cleansing at all when almost all the rivers in India are known to be highly polluted?

UN’s recognition of safe and clean drinking water and sanitation as a human right recently hit a decade and this makes us ponder even more about the situation in the Sundarbans after the Amphan cyclone. The destruction caused by Amphan in the Sundarbans poses a massive threat to the very right to safe and clean drinking water and sanitation of the people living there.