Comprehensive Assessment of Quality Index of Groundwater of Selected Government Schools in Patna District of Bihar, India
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.47604/ijes.3473Keywords:
Groundwater, Government Schools, Sustainable Development Goals, Water Quality Index, Correlation Matrix, Physiochemical Parameters, Health RisksAbstract
Purpose: This study assesses groundwater quality in Government Schools of Patna, Bihar, with a focus on its impact on student health and education. Groundwater, a critical resource for drinking and sanitation, is increasingly compromised by urbanization, industrialization, and inadequate waste management.
Methodology: Utilizing the Groundwater Quality Index (GWQI), water samples from schools were analyzed for parameters such as pH, total dissolved solids (TDS), alkalinity, conductivity, total hardness, calcium, magnesium, sulphate, nitrate, chloride, fluoride, and iron ion concentrations were analysed using standard devices. A correlation matrix of twelve parameters, among themselves and with water quality index (WQI) was constructed.
Findings: The values of all parameters were within the permissible limits (BIS: 2012) except iron concentration was found to be exceeding the prescribed standard limit. WQI has revealed the suitability of most of water samples for drinking not in all samples collected from fourteen different Government Schools. As findings revealed significant contamination in few schools, posing health risks, these issues adversely affect student attendance and academic outcomes.
Unique contribution to Theory, Practice and Policy: This research aligns with Sustainable Development Goal 6, aiming to ensure clean water access and underscores the urgent need for sustainable groundwater management in educational institutions. The results serve as a call to action for policymakers, educators, and stakeholders to prioritize water quality improvements, safeguarding children's health and fostering a conducive learning environment.
Downloads
References
Ahmed, T., Pervez, A., Mehtab, M., & Sherwani, S. K. (2015). Assessment of drinking water quality and its potential health impacts in academic institutions of Abbottabad (Pakistan). Desalination and Water Treatment, 54(7), 1819–1828. https://doi.org/10.1080/19443994.2014.890133
Anand, A. & Kumar, A., Kumar, J. & Singh, B. & Gangwar, T., (2024), "Analysis of impact of cremation on water quality of river Ganga at Digha Ghat in Patna, Bihar, India," International Journal of Environmental Sciences, IPRJB, 7(3), 40-56. https://doi.org/10.47604/ijes.2791.
Kumar, A., Gangwar, T., Kumar J., Anand A., (2024), Water quality assessment of drinking water in government hospitals in Patna District of Bihar, India, International Research Journal of Engineering and Technology (IRJET), 11(05), 2395-0056.
Alexandr, K. (2016) Strelkov, Sergey V. Stepanov, Svetlana Yu. Teplykh, Ashot M. Sargsyan (2016), Monitoring pollution level in railroad right-of-way, Procedia Environmental Sciences, 32, 147 – 154. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.proenv.2016.03.019.
APHA. (2017). Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Wastewater (23rd ed.). American Public Health Association, Washington, D.C.
Attoui, B., Kherci, N., & Bousnoubra, H. (2012). State of vulnerability to pollution of the big reservoirs of groundwater in the region of Annaba-Bouteldja (NE Algeria). Geographia Technica, 2, 1–13.
Baghvand, A., Nasrabadi, T., Nabibidhendi, G., Vosoogh, A., Karbassi, A., & Mehradadi, N. (2010). Groundwater quality degradation of an aquifer in Iran central desert. Desalination, 260(3), 264–275. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.desal.2010.02.038
BIS. (2012). Indian Standard Drinking Water Specification IS 10500: 2012. Bureau of Indian Standards, New Delhi.
Chung, PL., Chung, CY., Liao, SW. et al. Assessment of the school drinking water supply and the water quality in Pingtung County, Taiwan. Environ Monit Assess 159, 207–216 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-008-0623-9.
Dora, C., Haines, A., Balbus, J., Fletcher, E., Adair-Rohani, H., Alabaster, G., Hossain, R., de Onis, M., Branca, F., & Neira, M. (2015), Indicators linking health and sustainability in the post-2015 development agenda. The Lancet, 385(9965), 380–391. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(14)60605-X
Evans, W. D., Pattanayak, S. K., Young, S., Buszin, J., Rai, S., & Bihm, J. W. (2014). Social marketing of water and sanitation products: A systematic review of peer-reviewed literature, Social Science & Medicine, 110, 18–25. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2014.03.011
Mondal N.C., Singh V.S., Puranik S.C., Singh V.P. (2010), Trace element concentration in groundwater of Pesarlanka Island, Krishna Delta, India, Environ. Monit. Assess., 163, 15-27. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-009-0828-6
Prasad M., Sunitha V., Sudharshan V., Suvarna B. Reddy, Muralidhara B., Reddy, Reddy R. (2019), Data on water quality index development for groundwater quality assessment from Obulavaripalli Mandal, YSR district, A.P India, Journal Data of brief, 24, pp. 103-846, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.dib.2019.103846
Schijven, J. F., Hassanizadeh, S. M., & de Roda Husman, A. M. (2010). Vulnerability of unconfined aquifers to virus contamination, Water Research, 44(4), 1170–1181. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2010.01.002
Spellerberg, I., Ward, J., & Smith, F. (2004). A water quality monitoring programme for schools and communities. Journal of Biological Education, 38(4), 163–166. https://doi.org/10.1080/00219266.2004.9655935
Sukumaran, D., Saha, R., & Saxena, R. C. (2015), Ground water quality index of Patna, the capital city of Bihar, India, American Journal of Water Resources, 3(1), 17-21. http://pubs.sciepub.com/ajwr/3/1/3
Suvarna, T., Mohammad, J. S., & Rushikesh, S. (2012). Spatial distribution of groundwater quality in some selected parts of Pune City, Maharashtra, India using GIS. Current World Environment, 7(2), 281–286. http://dx.doi.org/10.12944/CWE.7.2.13.
United Nations (2015). Sustainable Development Goals: Goal 6 - Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all. Retrieved from https://sdgs.un.org/goals/goal6.
United Nations (2015), Sustainable Development Goals. Retrieved May 8, 2022, from https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/
WHO/UNICEF, Joint monitoring programme (JMP) for water supply, Sanitation and hygiene (WASH) progress on drinking water, sanitation and hygiene in schools 2015-2023: Special focus on menstrual health, https://data.unicef.org/resources/jmp-wash-in-schools-2024/
Wiłkomirski, B., Sudnik-Wójcikowska, B., Galera, H., Wierzbicka, M., Malawska, M. (2011), Railway transportation as a serious source of organic and inorganic pollution. Water Air Soil Pollut., 218 (1-4), 333-345. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-010-0645-0
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Jayant Kumar, Amit Kumar, Akshay Anand, Nikhil Raj, Shekhar Kumar Pandey, Rishav Kumar, Harsh Raj, Gangwar
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY) 4.0 License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
