Groundwater is a drinking-water source in India, but both aquifer geology and human activities threaten its safety. Contamination often remains undetected without laboratory testing. CGWB’s 2025 groundwater-quality report documents contaminated pockets across multiple states.
Major sources
• Arsenic: Naturally mobilised from sediments under oxygen-poor conditions, particularly in parts of West Bengal and Bihar.
• Fluoride: Dissolves from fluoride-bearing rocks, especially where groundwater remains underground for long periods.
• Nitrates: Leach from chemical fertilisers, livestock waste, sewage and poorly maintained septic tanks.
• PFAS: Persistent ‘forever chemicals’ reach aquifers through industrial discharge, landfill leachate and firefighting foams.
Consequences
• Arsenic exposure causes skin lesions and increases cancer risk; excessive fluoride produces dental and skeletal fluorosis.
• Nitrates can cause infant methemoglobinemia (‘blue baby syndrome’). Some PFAS are associated with weakened immune responses, developmental effects and elevated risks of certain cancers.
• Illness, treatment expenses and unreliable water supplies deepen low-income vulnerability.
• Ordinary boiling does not remove these dissolved chemical contaminants.
Remedial measures
• Scientific monitoring: Strengthen CGWB–state aquifer mapping, periodic testing, public water-quality dashboards and targeted PFAS surveillance.
• Safe alternatives: Under Jal Jeevan Mission, provide tested tap-water supplies or uncontaminated sources; maintain contaminant-specific treatment, including adsorption and suitable membrane technologies.
• Pollution prevention: Promote judicious fertiliser use, safe sewage disposal, industrial effluent treatment and strict enforcement of the polluter-pays principle.
• Local resilience: Protect recharge zones, regulate over-extraction, strengthen village water committees and arrange health screening in affected areas.
Conclusion. India must judge drinking-water security by verified safety at the point of use, not merely the number of tap connections.
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Groundwater Contamination: Sources and Solutions in India