Muhammad Raees, South Delhi. The problem of supply of contaminated water has persisted for a long time in many areas of the capital Delhi. This is not only affecting people's health, but it is also becoming a major cause of deaths. The bacteria, viruses and parasites present in contaminated water are proving to be most dangerous for children, the elderly and pregnant women.
Frequent diarrhea can lead to malnutrition and hindrance in physical development in children, while in the elderly this condition can also prove fatal. Apart from this, chemical elements are also increasing the danger to public health by contaminating the water. Not only bacteria in water, but also chemicals like fluoride, nitrate and arsenic are posing a serious threat.
Talking about Delhi government data, a total of 90,833 deaths were recorded in the year 2024. Of these, 21,427 deaths i.e. about 24 percent have been directly caused by infectious and parasitic diseases. This figure will be 28.66 percent in the year 2023 and 26.39 percent in 2022. This means that contaminated drinking water is no longer just a local problem, but is increasingly becoming a serious public health crisis.
Every day, a large number of patients are arriving in the government and private big hospitals of the city, whose main cause of illness is the consumption of contaminated water. If concrete and effective steps are not taken in time, the situation may become more frightening in the future. There is a continuous increase in cases of diarrhea, vomiting, typhoid, hepatitis A and E, stomach infections and dehydration in children in OPD and emergency departments of hospitals.
About five to seven percent of the total OPD patients suffer from diseases caused directly by contaminated water. This figure increases further during the rainy and summer seasons. Many times, dozens of patients reach the hospital simultaneously from the same area, making it clear that the problem is not individual but a collective one related to water supply.
Dr. Senior Director-Internal Medicine at Yatharth Hospital. According to Sanjay Gupta, prolonged consumption of contaminated water can cause serious damage to the liver, kidneys and bones. Many patients reach the hospital when the disease has progressed significantly.
Prevention is more important than treatment
According to health experts, water-borne diseases are completely preventable. For this, prevention and regular monitoring of water quality is more important than treatment. For this, it is important to take precautions at the domestic level in areas where water is coming in dirty.
Administrative role important in permanent solution
Complaints of contaminated drinking water are mostly coming in areas where sewer and drinking water lines are decades old. Sewer overflows occur at many places when the lines are damaged or the capacity is reduced. This dirty water is reaching the houses through the main supply through the broken drinking water line. At the same time, due to mountains of garbage and illegal dye factories, harmful chemicals have polluted the groundwater. A permanent solution to this problem is possible only by taking concrete steps at the administrative level.
Heavy metals damage liver and kidneys.
Heavy metals dissolved in groundwater also have adverse effects on every part of the body. There is a risk of liver and kidney damage from heavy metals like manganese, cobalt, chromium, lead, mercury. Along with heart related diseases, skin rashes can also occur. Not only this, if these heavy metals continue to reach the body in excess of the standard for a long time, they can also cause fatal diseases like cancer. Excessive amount of sodium causes the problem of high BP. Excess of potassium causes poor kidney function and heart disease./B-Dr. Sanjay Rai, Department of Community Medicine-AIIMS Delhi.
"The diseases spread by contaminated water are not only increasing the burden on hospitals, but are also weakening the health and economic condition of the society. Clean and safe drinking water is not a convenience, but a basic right of every citizen. For this, the administration, health system and the general public all have to take responsibility together."
-Dr. Sanjay Gupta, Senior Director-Internal Medicine (Yatharth Hospital-Model Town)
15 percent patients suffering from stomach related diseases are arriving every day.
Dr. Sanchayan Roy, Senior Consultant, Internal Medicine, Apollo Spectra Hospital, said that in recent times, there has been an increase in the cases of diseases caused by contaminated water among the patients coming to the hospital. Every day there are 10 to 15 percent patients in OPD whose complaints are directly related to drinking dirty or infected water.
Among these, cases like diarrhea, vomiting, severe stomach pain, fever, typhoid and hepatitis A are being reported the most. If we look at it on a monthly basis, 20 to 25 patients are reaching the hospital for treatment only due to water borne diseases, whereas in a year this number reaches thousands.
The effects of these infections are seen to be more severe in children, the elderly and those with pre-existing health conditions and in many cases, patients even need to be admitted.
A total of 90,833 deaths occurred in the year 2024
infectious and parasitic diseases
A total of 88,628 deaths occurred in the year 2023
Infectious and parasitic diseases 15,332 17.30