Reverse boring from alcohol distillery unit polluted groundwater, allege villagers; no action against factory yet
Villagers from around Zira show the polluted water samples they allegedly receive in their taps. Photo: Vikas Choudhary / CSE_ Residents of some 40 villages in the Zira town of Punjab’s Ferozepur district have been protesting for almost a year against an alcohol distillery unit in the town. The villagers have been suffering a host of health issues and blame the factory for polluting their groundwater.
Villagers allege that Malbros International Pvt Ltd has been carrying out reverse boring, where untreated effluents are pumped into the underground aquifers. The factory began functioning in 2008.
Ground visits by Down to Earth (DTE) to other villages in Punjab revealed a huge burden of diseases like cancer deaths, severe skin and dental issues and intellectual disabilities in children due to the consumption of water polluted by industry effluents and municipal waste.
DTE visited the protest site in Zira and saw some water samples that were red, brown and green. The 40 villages do not have an reverse osmosis (RO) water treatment plant, unlike villages in the other two districts, Fazilka and Muktsar. Many villagers cannot afford to install RO water filters in their homes.
Our only source of water is groundwater has been polluted for 30-40 years by the distillation factory, Harpreet Kaur, a resident of Zira, said.
Zira resident Harpreet Kaur at the protest site. Photo: Vikas Choudhary / CSE
Taking stock of the mounting health issues such as cancer, kidney diseases and reproductive health issues among women, villagers began protesting outside the industry, that has been ongoing for 11 months.
“Initially, we were afraid of standing up against the factory. But we made a conviction that we will not move from the site till we get justice,” Kaur said.
During the protests, First Information Reports or FIRs were filed against Kaur and some 37 other protesters in December 2022.
Meanwhile, villagers continue to suffer. Jagdev Singh, a 48-year-old farmer and a resident of Sudhiwala village, has throat cancer. He was diagnosed four years and is undergoing treatment at Guru Gobind Singh Medical College, Faridkot. “Doctor has told me that polluted water was responsible,” he said.
The water in the taps was gree -coloured when the factory was running, he said, adding he does not have an RO system at home to filter it.
48-year-old Jagdev Singh has throat cancer and looks much older than his age. Photo: Vikas Choudhary / CSE
Singh looks frail and much older than his actual age. The disease has robbed him of his ability to earn a living. He makes ends meet by renting out his 1.5-acre land and earns Rs 50,000-70,000 a year.
Though he is seeking treatment at a government-run hospital, he shells out Rs 5,000—6,000 every 20-30 days. “We are asked to get medicines from outside as well as get some tests done,” he explained. The family has spent Rs 4 lakh on treatments so far.
Singh tried to avail help under the Mukh Mantri Punjab Cancer Raahat Kosh Scheme, which was set up by the Government of Punjab. Financial assistance of Rs 1.5 lakh is provided to cancer patients in the state. But he did not receive any aid. “They do not give us money,” Singh’s sister told DTE.
Kaur highlighted that 6-7 people have died in the last 11 months in the villages due to cancer and kidney issues.
Ranjit Singh (58), a resident of Sudhiwala village, has been having issues with his knee for the last 13 years. He has visited a private hospital, where the doctor suggested knee replacement surgery. The government hospital is not hygienic, he said.
Villagers of Burj Mohar, who also rely on groundwater, have faced similar issues.
Tragedy struck 40-year-old Kuldeep Kaur after she lost her husband to kidney failure in December 2022 two months after he was diagnosed. The couple have two little children, 7-year-old Gurusahib and 9-month-old Gurleen Singh. They live a couple of kilometres from, the industry.
“Doctor told us that the polluted water could be responsible,” Kuldeep told DTE. Her family would receive light-yellow coloured water in the taps and had to install an RO system at home about two years ago.
Kuldeep’s family has had severe issues for the last 7-8 years. Her father-in-law is 65 and he can no longer walk. Kuldeep now earns her living by selling buffalo milk.
The Gram Panchayat of Ratoul Rohi and other surrounding villages complained to the National Green Tribunal in August, following which the NGT constituted a monitoring committee, which collected groundwater and soil samples and sent them to three different labs.
However, the industry was given a clean chit. Heavy metals were either below the detection limit or within limits, a document showed. The samples were changed, alleges Jaskirat Singh. Later, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) collected fresh samples and analysed them.
CPCB found 10 borewells within the premises of the industry and six piezometers (instruments that measure pore pressures in the ground). The industry, however, had permission for only four borewells and two piezometers.
The team monitored 29 borewells, five within the premises and 21 in villages within a five-kilometre radius of the industry. Out of the 29, water from 12 borewells had an unpleasant odour and five were yielding grey or blackish colour with a foul smell.
The team then found high concentrations of heavy metals such as arsenic, chromium, copper, iron, manganese, nickel, lead and selenium in two borewells within the premises.
The team concluded that water from none of the 29 borewells was fit for drinking, showed the CPCB document, which was released in May 2023.
The residents demanded they be provided water from the Bhakra canal. The government should pay heed and install RO treatment facilities in the villages, said Kaur. “People who have lost their loved ones should be given employment,” she said.
The FIRs on the residents have not been cancelled yet and no action has been taken on the said industry. The villagers continue consuming the tainted groundwater.
This story is part of a series on the health problems faced by people of Punjab due to pollution.
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