The Department of Health and Family Welfare has taken up the task of testing water sources, across the district, to try to avoid the spread of epidemics.
“Due to scarcity, people are drinking whatever kind of water that is available. In some cases, it may come from contaminated sources. We want to test as many sources as possible and create awareness among the people about avoiding their usage,” a senior officer said.
At a meeting of district and taluk officials, Baburao Hudgikar, district health and family planning officer, said that laboratories in government hospitals would be used for this purpose. If the tests prove that the water from a particular source is infected, the panchayat development officer or the urban local body officers concerned should be informed, Dr. Hudgikar said. He also asked officials to test waters of wells and tanks that had started yielding water after they were cleaned recently. Officials should also create awareness among the user communities about how to clean water from infected sources, including boiling and filtering.
