The Delhi Jal Board (DJB) Vice-Chairman Dinesh Mohaniya on Friday said samples from eight out of nine places in Delhi that figured in a BIS report have been found fit for drinking during a second analysis. Mohaniya said the DJB collected samples from the same places from where the BIS claimed to have collected it earlier and said that it failed in quality tests.
“Drinking water samples could not be collected from two places, including the official residence of the Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan, while one sample failed tests on one parameter — had less than required chlorine content,” he said.
Mohaniya said the sample from the house of one Geeta Devi in Janta Vihar was found “unfit for drinking” as it had less-than-required chlorine content.
“The tests were conducted in three labs in different localities in Delhi on 31 parameters. Usually the tests are
conducted on 29 parameters. Since our labs are highly equipped, we added two more parameters. The new results categorically prove the serious procedural lapses occurred while BIS collected the samples earlier,” he said, adding that even the sample taken from Paswan’s office in Krishi Bhawan has been found fit for drinking.
He said the Delhi Government will start collecting samples from the entire city on Saturday. Public notices will be issued informing people and the media of the places from where samples will be collected on a particular day.
“The media can come and cover the entire process. We will ensure complete transparency. After a sample is collected, it takes 48 hours for the results to come out. We will share them with the media and the public,” he said.
Asked if BIS officials will be part of the process, he said they have “lost their credibility but they can come if they wish to”. Mohaniya also said Water Quality India Association (WQIA), a body of RO companies, had approached the Supreme Court against the May 2019 order of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) that banned the use of reverse osmosis systems where drinking water supply had total dissolved solids (TDS) less than 500 mg per litre. “WQIA presented this BIS report before the apex court,” he said.
“We have written to the union ministry, asking them to explain the detailed modus operandi and action plan for the proposed joint committee to test the water quality in Delhi. We have received no response so far,” he said.
The Centre and the city Government have been trading allegations since Union Consumer Affairs Minister Ram Vilas Paswan released a Bureau of India Standards report on November 16 that said water samples collected from 11 places in the city failed quality tests on 19 parameters.