‘Sangam water was safe’: Govt cites new report

NEW DELHI: Citing a new report from CPCB, govt Monday informed Lok Sabha that water in Ganga at Triveni Sangam in Prayagraj was fit for bathing during the recently concluded Maha Kumbh.
Referring to the report, environment minister Bhupender Yadav in his written response to a question said, “Median value of pH, dissolved oxygen (DO), biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) and faecal coliform (FC) for all the monitored locations was within the respective criteria/permissible limits for bathing water.”
In an initial report on Feb 3, CPCB had informed NGT that water at several locations in Prayagraj during Kumbh did not meet primary bathing water quality standard due to high faecal coliform levels. Its report was based on river water quality data collected during 12-26 Jan, including monitoring data of 10 STPs installed at Prayagraj.