A Dugwell Program to Provide Arsenic-Safe Water in West Bengal, India: Preliminary Results

Abstract

In 1982, Dr. K. C. Saha, a dermatologist of Calcutta, West Bengal, identified patients with skin lesions from the district of 24 Parganas, leading him and others to search for a cause. The cause was soon identified to be arsenic in drinking water, but even today, 20 years later, large number of people continue to drink arsenic contaminated water and patients are increasing in number. Project Well is a program chosen for implementation in some villages of North 24 Parganas. Arsenic safe drinking water is provided for adopted villages by constructing shallow, concrete dugwells designed to tap the water of the unconfined aquifer, 20–30 feet below ground level, that contains low levels (<0.05 mg/L) of arsenic in the target region. The traditional dugwell design is modified by use of tube well hand pumps to withdraw water. The project includes community involvement, programs to increase awareness of the need to drink arsenic safe water, and training in monitoring of dugwell water for arsenic and harmful pathogens. Disinfecting of the water and regulating the water hazard diagram are also included in the training program. The plan is to make the system sustainable at the village level using indigenous labor and materials.

Keywords:

• Dugwell
• Arsenic mitigation
• Water hazard
• Village adoption

Acknowledgments

The Project Well field program was funded by donors, in particular members of Bay Area Prabasi-Inc., California, USA and executed by Project Well, Kolkata under the supervision of Mr. P. Chakraborty and Mr. D. K. Chakraborty. The fund was disbursed by Loka Kalyan Parishad, the Non Government Organization based in Kolkata. The grass root level NGO was Aikya Sammelani Club of Simulpur. The water analysis was done in Kolkata by the Center for Study of Man and Environment. The other advisors are Ms. Lisa Booker, Dr. Dipankar Chakraborty, Mrs. Sumana Chakraborty, Dr. D. N. Guha Mazumder, Dr. Timir Hore, and Dr. Allan H. Smith. International travel and participation of Dr. Allan H. Smith was partly funded by NIH Grants P42 ES04705-16 and D43 TW00815-07.