What is river pollution?

The contamination of water जलं with harmful chemicals and radiations is called
water जलं pollution प्रदू षण. There are various causes of water जलं pollution
including:

1. Many industries and factories are built near the banks of rivers नद ीः and
industrial waste is drained into the nearby water जलं source.
2. The atomic explosions in seas spread radioactive waste.
3. In some cities, sewer lines pour human and animals waste and garbage from
the city into nearby water bodies.
4. In villages people wash their dirty clothes, take bath and clean their utensils in
the pond, lake, or near open wells.
5. Nuclear power reactors discharge radioactive wastes and hot water जलं in
rivers नद ीः. So water जलं in rivers नद ीः as well as oceans gets polluted.
 अद्य नद ीः

Rivers Today

So India’s rivers नद ीः are undergoing a drastic change. Due to the pressures of

population and development, our perennial rivers नद ीः are becoming seasonal.
Many of the smaller rivers नद ीः have already vanished. Flood as well as drought are
becoming increasingly frequent, as rivers नद ीः turn unruly during the monsoon, and
vanish once the rainy season is over.

1. 25% of India is turning into desert.

2. In 15 years, we may have only half the water जलं we need for our survival.
3. The Ganga गङ्गा is one of the most endangered rivers नद ीः in the world.
4. The Godavari गोदावर was dry along much of its length last year.
5. The Kaveri has lost 40% of its flow. Krishna कृष्णीः and Narmada नर्मदा have
lost around 60%.
 How This Affects You

1. Estimates say that rivers नद ीः meet 65% of our water जलं needs.
2. 2 out of 3 major Indian cities already deal with daily water जलं shortage.
Many urban residents pay ten times the normal amount for a can of water जलं .
3. We consume water जलं not just to drink or for domestic purposes. 80% of
water जलं is used to grow our food. Each person’s average water जलं
requirement is 1.1 million liters a year.
4. Flood, drought and rivers नद ीः turning seasonal are increasingly leading to
crop failure across the country.
5. Climate change is expected to cause worse floods and droughts within the
next 25-50 years. During the monsoon, rivers नद ीः will flood. The rest of the
year, drought will follow. These trends are already beginning.
 जलं प्रदू षण
How to Control Water Pollution

Water जलं pollution प्रदू षण can be checked or at least minimized by the following
measures:

1. The sewage should be suitably treated before releasing it into water जलं
bodies. It is one of the most important means to recover usable water जलं from
the sewage. It involves three steps:

a. In the first treatment stage, the larger and suspended particles are
removed by simple physical methods such as sedimentation and
filtration.

b. In the second treatment stage, air is supplied to promote bacterial

decomposition of the organic matter followed by chlorination to kill the
germs.

c. In tertiary treatment stage, the salts like nitrates and phosphates are
removed by precipitation technique. Many developing countries follow
only the first two steps, as the third step is quite expensive.

i. Three stages of sewage treatment: The primary stage removes solid

material. The second stage is when microorganisms decompose
organic waste. Tertiary treatment removes minerals that may case
eutrophication.
2. The industrial effluents should be suitably treated before releasing pollutants.
For example, the acids and alkalis can be neutralized; the colloidal materials
can be coagulated, while the metallic salts can be precipitated.

3. Hot water जलं should be cooled before release from the power plants.

4. Washing clothes and taking bath directly in tanks, streams and rivers नद ीः,
which supply drinking water जलं , should be prohibited.

5. Excessive use of fertilizers and pesticides should be avoided and as far as

possible less stable pesticides should be used.

6. Water जलं hyacinth (an aquatic weed) can purify water जलं by taking some
toxic materials and a number of heavy metals from water जलं .

7. Governments should have very strict laws that help minimize water जलं
pollution प्रदू षण. These laws are usually directed at industries, hospitals,
schools and market areas on how to dispose, treat and manage sewage.
 How we can help?

My idea is “One day volunteer - one day meal”. A program that takes the help
from homeless people and saves rives too. Volunteers will help or get involved in:

1. Planting Trees and Not Crops to Fight Water जलं Pollution प्रदू षण.

2. Educating people to:

a. Never throw trash. Always look for the correct waste bin. If there is
none around, please take it home and put it in your trashcan. This
includes places like the beach, riverside and water जलं bodies.
b. Use water जलं wisely. Do not keep the tap running when not in use.
Also, you can reduce the amount of water जलं you use in washing and
bathing. This can significantly prevent water जलं shortages and reduce
the amount of dirty water जलं that needs treatment.
c. Do not throw chemicals, oils, paints and medicines down the sink drain,
or the toilet. In many cities, local environment office can help with the
disposal of medicines and chemicals.
d. Buy more environmentally safe cleaning liquids for use at home and
other public places. They are less dangerous to the environment.
e. If you use chemicals and pesticides for your gardens and farms, be
mindful not to overuse pesticides and fertilizers. This will reduce runoffs
of the chemical into nearby water sources. Start looking at options of
composting and using organic manure instead.
 f. If you live close to a water जलं body, try to plant lots of trees and
flowers around your home, so that when it rains, chemicals from your
home does not easily drain into the water जलं and prevent soil erosion.

Bibliography

http://www.nytimes.com/1997/10/21/us/planting-trees-and-not-crops-to-fight-
water-pollution.html

https://www.conserve-energy-future.com/various-water-pollution-facts.php

https://www.quora.com/Which-are-the-cleanest-and-dirtiest-rivers-in-India

https://www.quora.com/What-are-the-main-sources-of-water-pollution

http://isha.sadhguru.org/rally-for-rivers/our-dying-rivers/#stark_facts

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_pollution_in_India

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eutrophication
 Fun facts

1. The cleanest is Narmada and may be

Chambal also both river have water जलं
which is fit for drinking since it has low
bacteria count as compared to others
because of less number of industries around.
It has a variety of flora and fauna around it.

2. The dirtiest river is Yamuna in which all the

sewer lines and industrial wastes are feed in
to the river and is most polluted river in
India.

3. The Godavari गोदावर River is the second

longest river in India after the river Ganges
गङ्गा having its source at Tryambakeshwar,
Maharashtra र्हाराष्ट्र.
4. Plastic waste being a major water जलं
pollutant is causing huge destruction of
marine life and is believed to be responsible
for death more than 100,000 sea mammals,
sea birds and various types of fished.

5. About 700 million people worldwide drink

contaminated water जलं .

6. 2 million tons of human waste is disposed in

water जलं everyday.
Canals, rivers नद ीः and lakes in India often serve as dumping grounds for sewage,
solid and liquid wastes. These are sources of water जलं pollution प्रदू षण, as
illustrated in Tamilnadu.
The Ghats of river Ganges गङ्गा are polluted.
The Oshiwara River is severely polluted with solid and liquid waste generated by
Mumbai.
The eutrophication of the Potomac River is evident from the bright green water जलं ,
caused by a dense bloom of cyanobacteria.