MINISTER OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT (DR. RAGHUVANSH PRASAD SINGH)
(a) to (e): A statement is laid on the table of the House.
STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN PARTS (a) to (e) OF REPLY TO LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. 19 DUE FOR REPLY ON 17.02.2006
(a) Yes Sir.
(b) Drinking water supply is a State subject. The Government of India renders financial and technical assistance to the States in this endeavour through a centrally sponsored programme, namely, Accelerated Rural Water Supply Programme (ARWSP). Under this umbrella programme, the water quality monitoring and surveillance programme was started in the year 1988 to develop an integrated system by setting up of district level laboratories for water quality testing, reporting and generating awareness among rural masses about the importance of water quality and its relation to health. Over time, a need was felt to institutionalize community based water quality monitoring and surveillance systems in the country. Therefore, Government of India has introduced the National Rural Drinking Water Quality Monitoring & Surveillance Programme in February 2006 to be implemented at three levels. At the first level by involving Gram Panchayts, Village Water and Sanitation Committees (VWSC) and Grass root level workers like Anganwadi workers, Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHA) of National Rural Health Mission, School teachers, Primary Health Centres, laboratories of schools, educational and technical institutions etc. At the second level district level water quality testing laboratories /Polytechnics / Health Department Laboratories will do the monitoring and surveillance of drinking water sources in close coordination with gram panchayats and village water and sanitation committees. The nodal unit at the State level would be State Referral Institute / State Laboratory. The National Institute of Communicable Diseases, New Delhi has been identified as the National Referral Institute to act as consultants for Water Quality Monitoring and Surveillance programme. An MoU has been entered into with them for this purpose. Activities relating to preliminary water testing etc. is to be carried out by the Gram Panchayat / VWSCs by user-friendly field testing kits and positively tested samples may be referred to district level laboratories, intermediary units and/or the State level laboratory. The State Water and Sanitation Mission / District Water and Sanitation Mission would be supervising and facilitating awareness creation and capacity building of the Gram Panchayats / VWSCs etc. 100% funding, as per the approved norms, is being provided to the States for strengthening water quality monitoring facilities. These include funds for Information, Education and Communication (IEC), Human Resource Development (HRD) and Monitoring and Surveillance Activities like field testing kits. Health Department officials at all levels are to be increasingly involved in the surveillance activity.
(c) For establishing stationary district level water quality testing laboratory, wherever, the facility was not available, assistance to the tune of Rs 1,86,500 per laboratory was provided to the State Governments prior to 1993-94. After 1993-94, this unit cost was revised to Rs 4 lakh per unit (Rs. 1 lakh for laboratory building and Rs. 3 lakh for equipments, chemicals and glassware). This funding pattern is still continuing. During the period 1988-1993, 23 mobile laboratories were sanctioned. However, the sanction of mobile laboratories was discontinued in 1993-94.
(d) Details of laboratories sanctioned and established, State-wise is given in Annex-1. The funds released during the last 3 years and current year State-wise is given in Annex-2.
(e) Govt. of India had issued Executive guidelines for Implementation of Water Quality Testing Laboratories for routine analysis of water samples for their physiochemical and microbial quality, in May 1990. This is available at our website www.ddws.gov.in. Guidelines for National Rural Drinking Water Quality Monitoring & Surveillance Programme envisaging water quality testing at the grass root level by user-friendly field testing kits have also been issued and the same are also available on the Departmental web site.
Annex - 2
Statement referred in reply to Lok Sabha Starred Question no. 19 due for reply on 17/2/2006
Year-wise and State-wise funds released during the last 3 years and the current year for setting up of district level water quality testing laboratories
Sl.No. State Funds released in Rs lakh 2002-03 2003-04 2004-05 2005-06
1 Madhya Pradesh 0.00 0.00 6.00 0.00
2 Mizoram 8.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
3 Orissa 0.00 0.00 36.00 0.00
4 West Bengal 14.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
5 Bihar 0.00 66.00 0.00 0.00
6 Chattisgarh 0.00 20.00 0.00 0.00 Total 22.00 86.00 42.00 0.00
Annex - 1
Statement referred in reply to Lok Sabha Starred question no. 19 due for reply on 17/2/2006
SETTING UP OF DISTRICT LEVEL WATER QUALITY LABORATORY
Sl.No. Name of the No. of Status Stationary Total Mobile State/UT Districts Laboratories Esta- laboratories By centre By State blished Sanct- Deliv- Sanct- Estab- Estab- ioned ered ioned lished lished
1 Andhra Pradesh 23 14 14 37 51 - -
2 Arunachal Pradesh 15 13 1 0 1 - -
3 Assam 23 21 21 2 23 - -
4 Bihar 37 35 2 2 4 1 1
5 Chandigarh (UT) 1 0 0 0 - -
6 Chattisgarh 16 16 6 2 8 - -
7 Goa 2 1 1 1 2 - -
8 Gujarat 25 13 5 4 9 1 1
9 Haryana 19 18 18 1 19 - -
10 Himachal Pradesh 12 10 10 5 15 1 1
11 Jammu & Kashmir 14 9 6 2 8 3 3
12 Jharkhand 22 16 6 6 - -
13 Karnataka 27 21 9 0 9 - -
14 Kerala 14 4 4 10 14 - -
15 Madhya Pradesh 48 48 48 14 62 1 1
16 Maharashtra 35 3 3 27 30 1 1
17 Manipur 9 8 3 0 3 1 1
18 Meghalaya 7 7 7 0 7 1 1
19 Mizoram 8 4 4 0 4 1 1
20 Nagaland 8 6 2 0 2 1 1
21 Orissa 30 30 29 0 29 1 1
22 Punjab 17 12 4 0 4 - -
23 Rajasthan 32 23 23 10 33 1 1
24 Sikkim 4 3 2 0 2 1 1
25 Tamil Nadu 30 24 24 6 30 1 1
26 Tripura 4 3 3 3 6 1 1
27 Uttar Pradesh 70 67 8 1 9 1 1
28 Uttaranchal 13 3 0 3 - -
29 West Bengal 18 17 13 6 19 1 1
30 A&N Island 2 1 1 0 1 - -
31 D & N. Haveli 1 1 1 0 1 - -
32 Daman & Diu 2 2 2 0 2 - -
33 Delhi 9 0 0 6 6 1 1
34 Lakhadweep 1 7 2 7 9 - -
35 Pondicherry 4 2 2 2 4 - -
36 Dl. Jodhpur 1 1
37 ITRC, Lucknow 1 1
38 AIIPH&PH, Calcutta 1 1 All India 602 459 287 148 435 23 23
Note : 67 district water quality testing laboratories approved for esrtwhile Uttar Pradesh, which included Uttaranchal also.
