Jammu, India: The ground water reserve in Jammu and Kashmir (JK) is not suitable for human consumption, according to a water mapping survey, conducted by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
The Jammu and Kashmir State Government invested INR 2.5 crore in the survey, based-on remote sensing technology. The survey found high level of iron or fluoride contents in the water which makes it unsafe for drinking.
The report stated that many of the newly found underground water channels have been found at inaccessible locations, which need sophisticated technology to extract, beyond the range of equipments what the engineers are using in the country at the moment. The report was recently submitted to the government by the space scientists.
The report revealed that the situation is more alarming in Kashmir valley as despite having abundance of glacier fed streams, which also recharge the under ground channels, high level of iron has been found at most of the places. Similarly in Jammu region the survey has either shown very poor quality of hydro reserves or its total absence, which in turn has thrown a tough challenge for the planners, as how to cope up with the increasing demand of potable water in the coming decades. In places, like Lolab and Kupwara, hit by the acute water scarcity, high mineral content has been found in newly found underground sources, which has cast its shadow over the plan to exploit these on massive scale. Likewise in Jammu region, the ground water in Rajouri, Poonch, Doda, Kandi belt and southern districts is trapped at the places where it is very difficult to extract it at the moment.
Source: GreaterKashmir.com
