Haridwar: The Ganga river water in Haridwar was found to be in ‘B’ category, making it unsafe for drinking but suitable for bathing, said Uttarakhand Pollution Control Board on Wednesday. The Uttarakhand Pollution Control Board test the water of Ganga every month at about eight places around Haridwar along the Uttar Pradesh border.

During the recent testing the water of the Ganga river for the month of November was found to be ‘B’ category. The river water is allotted into five categories with ‘A’ being the least toxic, which means that the water can be used as a source of drinking after disinfection, and ‘E’ being the most toxic. 

Rajendra Singh, regional officer of UKPCB said, “Central Pollution Control Board has divided the quality of water into 5 classes. On the basis of four parameters (pH, dissolved oxygen, biological oxygen and total coliform bacteria), the quality of Ganga has been found to be in the ‘B’ category. This means that the water of Ganga is suitable for bathing.”

Ujwal Pandit, the local priest also expressed his concern over the increasing pollution in water. He said that the purity of Ganga water is affected because of human waste. “By bathing with only Ganga water, the diseases of our body are cured. Diseases like cancer are cured by it. We claim that if you take Ganga water now and check it after 10 years, you will not find any impurity in it. But whatever is coming out regarding the purity of Ganga water is because of human waste and we need to change it,” he said. 

Meanwhile, the pollution in India’s river bodies, especially in Yumana river in Delhi, has been the cause of serious concern for the past few years. On December 1, a thick layer of toxic foam was seen floating on the surface of the Yanuma River, raising concerns about the potential health risk.