Tap water in Bengaluru, Chennai not safe for drinking: Govt study
New Delhi, Nov 16: Mumbai residents need not buy reverse osmosis (RO) water purifiers as a study by the Union Consumer Affairs Ministry has found samples of tap water collected from the financial capital compliant with the Indian standards for drinking water, according to a report.
However, other metro cities of Delhi, Kolkata and Chennai failed in almost 10 out of 11 quality parameters tested by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) which is under the aegis of the Consumer Affairs Ministry.
Similarly, samples drawn from 17 other state capitals were not as per the specification 'Indian Standard (IS)-10500:2012' for drinking water.
Releasing the second phase study, Consumer Affairs Minister Ram Vilas Paswan said, "Out of 20 state capitals, all the 10 samples of piped water drawn from Mumbai were found to comply with all 11 parameters, while other cities are failing in one or more."
The solution to this problem is to make compliance of quality standards for piped water mandatory across the country. The ministry has written to state governments in this regard, he told reporters.
"Stringent actions cannot be taken as the quality standards for piped water at present are not mandatory. Once it becomes, we can take actions," Paswan added.
In the first phase, the BIS had found all the 11 samples drawn from Delhi did not comply with the quality norm and the piped water was not safe for drinking purpose, he added.
Testing was conducted to check Organoleptic and physical parameters and know the chemical and toxic substances and bacteriological quality besides virological and biological parameters.
As per the latest study, one or more samples did not comply with the requirements of the IS in the cities of Hyderabad, Bhubaneswar, Ranchi, Raipur, Amravati and Shimla.
For instance, the sample in Hyderabad failed in one parameter 'phenolic compounds' and Bhubaneswar in 'Chloramines', while Chandigarh in two parameters 'Aluminium and Coliform'.
"None of the samples drawn from 13 of the state capitals -- Chandigarh, Guwahati, Bengaluru, Gandhinagar, Lucknow, Jammu, Jaipur, Dehradun, Chennai, Kolkata --complied with the requirements of the IS," he said.
In Chennai, all 10 samples failed in nine parameters like turbidity, odour, total hardness, chloride, fluoride, Ammonia, Boron and Coliform, while all nine samples in Kolkata failed in 10 quality parameters, the study showed.
In the third phase, BIS Director-General Pramod Kumar Tiwari said, samples from the capital cities of northeastern states and from 100 smart cities will be tested and their results are expected by January 15, 2020.
In the fourth phase, it is proposed to test samples from all the district headquarters of the country and the results are expected by August 15, 2020, he added.
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Smriti Mandhana named BBC Indian Sportswoman of the Year for 2025
New Delhi (PTI): Star batter Smriti Mandhana, who played a pivotal role in India's historic 2025 Women's World Cup triumph, was named the BBC Indian Sportswoman of the Year for 2025 at a glittering function here on Monday.
Chess prodigy Divya Deshmukh won the Emerging Player of the Year award, for her historic FIDE Women's World Cup triumph at just 20.
Preethi Pal was named the Para-Sportswoman of the Year, for winning two bronze medals at the 2024 Paris Paralympics in track and field, while Anjali Bhagwat was honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Award, recognising her pioneering career as India's first woman shooter to reach an Olympic final and her trailblazing success on the world stage.
Mandhana, who is currently touring Australia with the Indian team for multi-format bilateral assignments, said in a video message: "Thank you BBC for giving me the awardfor Best Sportswoman of the Year. 2025 was a special year for women's cricket, especiallytowards the end we had a World Cup and I'm happy I could contribute and help India win matches.".
At 29, the left-handed batter is already among the game's greats, with the second-highest number of centuries in women's One Day Internationals and ranking third in total runsscored among current players worldwide.
Hailing from Sangli city in Maharashtra, the affable Mandhana was inspired by her father and brother, both of whom played cricket at the district level.
In September last year, she made a 50-ball hundred against Australia – the fastest 50 over international ton (men and women) by an Indian in the format, breaking Virat Kohli's record.
The award winners were decided by a distinguished grand jury comprising Leander Paes, Deepa Malik, and Anju Bobby George.
Praising the athletes' achievements CEO of BBC News, Jonathan Munro said: "Congratulations to this year's winners who showcase the very best in sporting excellence. The BBC World Service is committed to bringing such stories of human endeavour and outstanding success to audiences across India and around the world.".
Additionally, the ceremony also celebrated a wide spectrum of talent and impact, recognizing star performers and changemakers for redefining the landscape of Indian sport.
BBC Star Performers of the Year 202.
• Indian Women's Cricket Team: for their historic World Cup victory.
• Ekta Bhyan, Deepthi Jeevanji and Preethi Pal: for their trailblazing performances at the World Para Athletics Championship.
• Indian Women's Cricket Team for the Blind: for their inspiring World Cup victory.
• Indian Women's Kabaddi Team: for their smashing victory in World Cup.
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BBC Changemakers of the Year 202.
• Indian Women's Ice Hockey Team: for breaking barriers in a non-traditional sport.
• Rajbir Kaur: Indian field hockey player and former captain of the women’s national team.
• Savita Punia: Indian field hockey player and current member of the national team.
• Paani Devi: recognised for her impactful contribution to grassroots sport.
