Bengaluru tap water contains faecal matter, finds study

Study after study is giving a scary picture of the quality of drinking water in Bengaluru.

Weeks after a report by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) showed that tap water in the city is not safe to drink, a study by the Bengaluru-based PES University has presented an equally grim picture.

A team of professors from PES University collected water samples from seven localities of North and South Bengaluru. The samples were then tested in the laboratory, and the result was alarming: Coliform was present in each sample. Coliforms are bacteria that are present in the digestive tracts of animals and human beings, and their wastes. Put simply, drinking water was contaminated with faecal matter. Coliforms cause amoebiasis (a common infection of the human gastrointestinal tract) and other water-borne diseases.

Bengaluru's water a deadly drink

Prof Krishna Murthy, Registrar, PES University, who led the research team, said the tests covered physical, chemical and microbiological parameters. “The results of physical and chemical tests aren’t that scary but biological results are disturbing,” said Prof Murthy.

We are looking away from the crisis

Physical and chemical test parameters met the minimum, or lower limit, standards but all the seven samples failed the microbiological test. The university plans to submit the report to the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewage Board (BWSSB) for further action.