Quality, Standards and Testing

Water needed for human consumption, industrial purposes or other requirements must cater to certain minimum standards. The quality of any water is defined by its physical and chemical properties (characteristics). Physical properties include its appearance (colour, clarity and odour, perhaps also its taste) while the chemical properties refer to the constituents dissolved in it. Some of the physical properties are measurable and can be expressed in units of measurement while others like appearance, odour or taste are clearly subjective. However, all the chemical constituents can be measured accurately.

Drinking water must meet certain quality standards to safeguard the health of the people. The permissible and desirable limits of various parameters in drinking water have been detailed as per the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) standard specifications for potable water. These parameters are included in BIS-10500-1991. The various parameters covered include colour, odour, pH, total dissolved solids, hardness, alkalinity, elemental compounds such as iron, manganese, sulphate, nitrate, chloride, fluoride, arsenic, chromium, copper, cyanide, lead, mercury, zinc and coliform bacteria. The tolerance limits for inland surface waters for various classes of water use have been published by the Central Water Commission. Per ISI-IS: 2296-1982, the tolerance limits of parameters are specified as per classified use of water depending on various uses of water ranging from Class A to Class E.

What does the water that one drinks contain, what substances are dissolved in it and what are their safe limits? What are the issues that affect water quality? For more detailed information on all this, please read our FAQs on Rules, Regulations & Standards concerning water and Equipments used to measure water quality and quantity.

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/topics/quality-standards-and-testing

Managing Natural Resources -A report by IDSAsr

Managing the scare natural resources better and how space programme plays a role in this, a seminar of country's brilliant minds take the issue head on.

IDSAsr

Posted on 18 Jan, 2011 04:24 PM

The scarcity value of natural resources has risen due to rising pressure of human population and demands made by modern economics progress. As such managing these resources has become very important.

Articles on rainwater harvesting and river pollution by Janhit Foundation

Janhit Foundation

Posted on 18 Jan, 2011 04:18 PM

These Articles analyse and detail the issues of rainwater harvesting and river pollution

Booklets on water quality, river pollution and rainwater harvesting by Janhit Foundation

The three booklets discuss the issues of water quality, river pollution, and rainwater harvesting, in detail.

Janhit Foundation

Posted on 18 Jan, 2011 04:16 PM

The three booklets discuss the issues of water quality, river pollution, and rainwater harvesting, in detail.

Benchmarking local government performance on rural sanitation in Himachal Pradesh - A learning note by WSP

This document is about benchmarking local government performance on rural sanitation in Himachal Pradesh.

C Ajith Kumar

Upneet Singh

Water and Sanitation Program (WSP)

Posted on 06 Jan, 2011 06:43 AM

This document deals with benchmarking local government performance on rural sanitation in Himachal Pradesh. To strengthen outcome-focused management of the rural sanitation sector in India, the Water and Sanitation Program’s (WSP) Global Scaling Up Sanitation Project, in partnership with the Government of Himachal Pradesh, developed a five-step process to monitor and benchmark performance on a monthly basis across all twelve districts in the state. Applied at the local government (district) level, this process has proven to be an effective approach, one that can improve reporting, monitoring, and performance.

Maharashtra Groundwater (Development and Management) Bill (2009)

Maharashtra ensured of sustainable and adequate supply of groundwater, maintained prescribed quality and protected public drinking water sources.

Government of Maharashtra

Posted on 05 Jan, 2011 07:32 PM

The Maharashtra Groundwater (Development and Management) Bill, 2009 aims to facilitate and ensure sustainable and adequate supply of groundwater of prescribed quality, for various category of users, through supply and demand management measures, protecting public drinking water sources and to establish the State Groundwater Authority and District Level Authorities to manage and to regulate, with community participation, the exploitation of groundwater within the State of Maharashtra.

Guidelines for water safety plans for rural water supply systems by the Sulabh International Academy of Environmental Sanitation

Developing a village security plan for providing drinking water to rural households is now the focus.

Sulabh International Academy of Environmental Sanitation

Posted on 27 Dec, 2010 07:20 PM

This document by the Sulabh International Academy of Environmental Sanitation presents the guidelines for water safety plans for rural water supply systems. The revised National Rural Drinking Water Programme (NRDWP) Guidelines 2009-2012 issued by Rajiv Gandhi National Drinking Water Mission, Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation has shifted the focus from source development and installation of water supply system for providing drinking water supply to rural household to focus on development of village security plan.

Preparation of strategic plan for rural drinking water sector in India – A draft discussion paper by the Department of Drinking Water Supply

Preparing a strategic plan for rural drinking water sector in India with technical and financial details to accelerate coverage across the rural land.

Department of Drinking Water Supply (Ministry of Rural Development)

Posted on 26 Dec, 2010 07:27 AM

This draft discussion paper by the Department of Drinking Water Supply (Ministry of Rural Development) deals with the preparation of strategic plan for rural drinking water sector in India. The Government of India introduced the Accelerated Rural Water Supply Programme (ARWSP) in 1972–73 to support States and UTs with financial and technical assistance to implement drinking water supply schemes in order to accelerate the pace of coverage across rural India.

Mitigating climate change through organic agriculture - Keynote address at the Third Organic Farming Association of India Convention, held at Anand, Gujarat (2010)

Green Revolution (GR) technologies, supported by official policies, and fuelled by agro-chemicals, machinery and irrigation, are well known to have improved agricultural production and productivity.

OP Rupela

Posted on 25 Dec, 2010 10:43 PM

Green Revolution (GR) technologies, supported by official policies, and fuelled by agro-chemicals, machinery and irrigation, are well known to have improved agricultural production and productivity. While these technologies greatly helped developing countries to address their food-security and food-sovereignty needs, farmers using these technologies have had to depend on external inputs.

Saving rice - Ambitious plans to increase productivity

Rice is at the heart of a fierce strategy debate as the country prepares to launch the second Green Revolution in the eastern states. Policymakers and scientists have drawn up ambitious plans to increase the productivity of this cereal which feeds two-thirds of Indians.

Latha Jishnu

Aparna Pallavi

Sayantan Bera

Posted on 24 Dec, 2010 10:13 AM

Enormous funds are being poured into research aimed at improving seed varieties, with a heavy focus on developing hybrid rice. Is it the right option for millions of small rice farmers who are already battling high input costs and increasingly unpredictable weather? Or does part of the solution lie in efficient methods of cultivation that will cut down water use and improve yield?

The economic impacts of inadequate sanitation in India: Rs. 2.4 Trillion equivalent of 6.4 per cent of GDP – A report by WSP

Inadequate sanitation causes India considerable economic losses, equivalent to 6.4 per cent of India's GDP in 2006 at Rs. 2.4 Trillion. How to manage human excreta and hygiene?

Anupam Tyagi

Asian Development Bank (ADB)

Australian AID (AusAID)

UKAid

WSP (World Bank)

Posted on 24 Dec, 2010 09:27 AM

WSP This study report by the Water and Sanitation Programme (WSP), a global partnership administered by the World Bank suggests that inadequate sanitation causes India considerable economic losses, equivalent to 6.4 per cent of India's GDP in 2006 at Rs. 2.4 Trillion. It analyzed the evidence on the adverse economic impacts of inadequate sanitation, which include costs associated with death and disease, accessing and treating water, and losses in education, productivity, time, and tourism. The findings are based on 2006 figures, although a similar magnitude of losses is likely in later years.

The study focused on the safe management of human excreta and associated hygiene behavior. The methodology adopted by the study included disaggregating the economic impacts of inadequate sanitation into health-related impacts including premature deaths, costs of treating diseases, and productive time lost due to illnesses; domestic water-related impacts including household treatment of water, and money and time costs to obtain safe water; welfare losses including additional time spent by people for accessing toilets or open defecation sites, and girls having to miss school, and women not going to work; and the loss of potential tourism owing to inadequate sanitation.

Data on incidence (e.g. diarrheal diseases, deaths, etc.) were compiled from national sources (National Family Health Survey, WHO Demographic and Health Surveys, and other Govt. of India sources). Based on scientific literature, attribution factors were used to estimate the populations impacted by inadequate sanitation. Economic valuation was carried out using costs/prices based on secondary studies.

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हरित छतों वाली बिल्डिंग (courtesy - needpix.com)