A pilot study has found high levels of lead and uranium in children's blood and in groundwater samples collected from Bathinda and Rupnagar in Punjab and Chandigarh.
The study, conducted by Panjab University's Geo-Environmental Research Laboratory in collaboration with Baba Farid NGO, Faridkot, analysed 149 blood samples and 137 hair samples of children in the age group 5-15 years and 37 groundwater samples across these three locations.
In the blood tests for lead, 26.17 per cent samples (39 out of 149) exceeded the WHO's safe limit of 3.5 micrograms per decilitre.
In Bathinda, 32.62 per cent samples (22 out of 68) exceeded the WHO's limit. In Rupnagar, 19.35 per cent samples (12 out of 62) tested above the limit, averaging 6.4 micrograms per decilitre. In Chandigarh, 26.32 per cent samples (5 out of 19) exceeded the limit with an average concentration of 6.3.
The test results of hair samples showed 39 per cent samples (54 out of 137) were above the safe limit of lead -- 2 micrograms per gram.
According to the report, 79 per cent samples (15 out of 19) in Chandigarh, 39 per cent samples (24 out of 61) in Rupnagar and 26 per cent samples (15 out of 57) in Bathinda exceeded the safe limit.
Groundwater testing report showed that all 19 samples in Bathinda exceeded the WHO and Bureau of Indian Standards limits for uranium. In Rupnagar, one of 13 samples exceeded the WHO limits. However, in Chandigarh, all 5 samples did not exceed the permissible limit.
Meanwhile, the Punjab State and UT Chandigarh Human Rights Commission described the findings of the pilot study as a grave public health crisis and a serious human rights violation, particularly under Article 21 of the Constitution which guarantees the right to life and health.
Commission chairperson Justice Sant Parkash emphasised that environmental degradation impacting children's health cannot be tolerated.
The Commission directed the chief secretaries of Punjab and Chandigarh to submit a comprehensive action plan to assess heavy metal contamination. The plan must include identification of contamination hotspots, testing protocols, and clear timelines for remedial action, said the commission.
It also asked the principal secretaries of health of Punjab and Chandigarh to ensure the immediate availability of chelation therapy drugs, the antidote for heavy metal poisoning, in district hospitals.
It directed that a dedicated toxicology department be set up in at least one major government hospital in both Punjab and Chandigarh.
The Commission also called for urgent inspections of thermal power plants, cement factories and other industrial units in Bathinda and Rupnagar and the examination of water leaching, fly ash management and improper waste disposal practices.
The human rights panel also asked the principal secretary, Department of Water Supply and Sanitation, of Punjab, and the municipal commissioner of Chandigarh to verify and ensure proper installation and maintenance of RO water systems, particularly in schools, anganwadi centres, and rural households in affected areas.
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