The State government on Thursday announced that Ragada River water was now safe for drinking even as the Water Resources Department (WRD) took disciplinary action against a fish pond owner for contaminating the river. The WRD issued a notice to the owner and confiscated the pumps used for fish cultivation after discovering that the water from the ponds was being released into the river, causing contamination.
The WRD’s report revealed that the fish pond owner had been operating three catfish cultivation ponds near the river, releasing contaminated water into the river, which rendered it unfit for consumption. Consequently, a green-coloured film layer was discovered on the river while some fish in the river perished, prompting concerns about the water quality. “As soon as the laboratory tests revealed that the water was unfit to drink we took action against the pond owner. Now, the river is fit to drink as the contaminated water has cleared out,” said WRD Minister Subhash Shirodkar.
He said that measures were taken to address the contamination, and the river water was now deemed safe for consumption after the polluted water had been flushed out. Additionally, the fish pond owner was issued a show-cause notice for endangering public health, and his pumps were confiscated. “We have put restrictions on the fish cultivating business. However, he can resume the fish project by amending the fish production operation,” the minister said.
The Ragada River serves as the primary source of drinking water for the residents of Sancorda, who had recently raised concerns about its contamination and demanded action against the fish pond owner. With PWD authorities refusing to make alternate arrangement to supply drinking water, locals made arrangement to supply drinking water through water tankers. The villagers slammed the authorities for failing to come to their rescue despite the emergency situation in the area. They had also demanded from the local panchayat to take action against the fish pond owner for contaminating the river water.