Kanker (Chhattisgarh): In Dumarpani village here, the presence of high fluoride levels in drinking water has given rise to a critical health hazard for the 2,000 inhabitants with cases of fluorosis on the rise, especially among school children.
Dumarpani is a village in the Narharpur Tehsil of Chhattisgarh. It is located 27 Km towards North from District head quarters Kanker, 18 Km from Narharpur and 101 Km from state capital Raipur.
For the past 20 years, the presence of high fluoride levels in drinking water in the village has crippled the villagers, resulting in the weakening of their bones, causing abnormal bone growths, (spurs) on the spine, and calcification in ligaments.
Even though a fluoride removal machine was installed during the Raman Singh-led government, it collapsed, owing to the negligence of the Chhattisgarh Public Health Engineering Department, disappointing the people in the area who have been craving access to clean drinking water.
With only 19 hand pumps in the village which have all been supplying hazardous fluoride-contaminated water, as many as 35 out of the 2,000 inhabitants of the town have already fallen seriously ill. Dumarpani has 60 school children out of which a whopping 50 of them have fluorosis with their teeth turning yellow, black and red.
Former Chief Minister and senior Congress leader Bhupesh Baghel, too, had promised to give the villagers access to clean water but in vain. Villagers now have accepted their faith and have no hope left of saving their health. ETV Bharat's Tameshwar Sinha spoke to sarpanch Meena Markam who said that this has been a persistent issue here for decades.
"This also has long-term effects. We have observed that most children, lately, are being born disabled. We are also seeing elderly people unable to walk due to crooked bones. The health department is least bothered. They sometimes come and set up camps and leave,'' she said.
When Sinha visited one of the primary schools, he noticed that the children drank water from a single bore which is located inside the premises. The mid-day meal, too was cooked using the same water. Most kids studying in standard I had slightly yellowish teeth while those in standard III and V had black and red, ETV Bharat found out.
School teachers Jagdev Kumar and Dular Ram Kunjam said that they have been observing this change of colour in teeth in children since 2018. "A fluoride removal machine was installed in the school, but it broke down two days after installation,'' said Purnima Rasoiyya, the school cook.
ETV Bharat spoke to Kanker collector Nilesh Kshirsagar who assured that a solution will soon be found out and implemented to save the villagers from falling sick. ''We know villagers in the Narharpur Tehsil here have been seriously affected. We have been running a government programme to provide relief to the people there," he said.
Effects of excessive fluoride in water: People who live in areas where the drinking water has a naturally high fluoride level may consume too much fluoride—causing a condition called fluorosis. Children who intake a high dose of a fluoride supplement can also develop fluorosis, even if they live in an area where the drinking water does not contain fluoride.
Fluoride accumulates in teeth, particularly permanent teeth. Chalky white, irregular patches appear on the surface of the tooth enamel. The patches later become stained yellow or brown, causing the enamel to appear blotchy.
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