It’s no secret that the Capital annually suffers from an alarming rise in the cases of cholera, acute diarrhoeal diseases and typhoid after the onset of monsoon. “Contaminated and unsafe water,” according to doctors “is one of the most common disease-causing component this season.”
The Capital’s 21.6 per cent households still have no access to safe drinking water within their homes, while 6.1 per cent households source their drinking water from untreated sources.
These figures have been released by the Central Bureau of Health Intelligence in its report on ‘National Health Profile-2013’, which looked at distribution of households having safe drinking water facilities across the country.
“While as per the report, Delhi fares much better than several States across the country, the figures still don’t read good for the Capital that has the resources, infrastructure, manpower and expertise to ensure that there is at least one source of clean drinking water per household,’’ said Dr. Anil Bansal of the Delhi Medical Association.
Monsoon not only brings with it a sudden jump in the number of dengue and malaria cases but also jaundice, cholera, stomach, skin and eye infections almost all of which can be connected to use of unsafe or contaminated water, said Dr. Bansal.
