title: Chemical analysis of groundwater of Nathnagar Block under Bhagalpur District, Bihar (India).
abstract: The chemical analysis of groundwater samples from hundred handpumps in five villages of the Nathnagar Block under Bhagalpur District, Bihar, India indicates that the water samples in the area were slightly alkaline and the concentration of total hardness and heavy metal like arsenic were above the drinking water specifications as prescribed by World Health Organization (1999) and ISI (2003); whereas other chemical parameters were well within the permissible limit. The results of the present study suggest that the groundwater sources under investigation were suitable for domestic purposes including drinking except for arsenic. The concentration of arsenic in most of the handpumps analyzed was high, and that might be attributed to the excessive withdrawal of the groundwater and changes in the geo-chemical environment of the Ganga river. Moreover, the Ganga River System itself carries high sediment bed loads which contain several trace elements, including arsenic. Some effective measures like rainwater harvesting and artificial recharge techniques are urgently required and suggested for water quality management in this region.
authors.affiliation: Environmental Biology Laboratory, University Department of Botany, T.M. Bhagalpur University, Bhagalpur--812 007 India.
authors.forename: Amrita
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Singh
authors.forename: Sunil K
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Choudhary
mesh_terms: D060766:Drinking Water / Q000032:analysis* / Q000737:chemistry*; D060587:Groundwater / Q000032:analysis* / Q000737:chemistry*; D007194:India; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis* / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D060766:Drinking Water; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical