Water Science

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Water Science 31 (2017) 4451

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Research Article

Studies on high iron content in water resources of Moradabad district

(UP), India
Vipin Kumar a , Pawan Kumar Bharti a , Meenu Talwar a, , Ajay K. Tyagi a ,
Pamposh Kumar b
a Shriram Institute for Industrial Research, New Delhi 110007, India
b NCSTC, Department of Science and Technology, Technology Bhavan, New Mehrauli Road, New Delhi 110016, India
Received 29 April 2016; accepted 26 February 2017
Available online 14 April 2017

Abstract
In India, the district of Moradabad lies between 28 21 to 28 16 north latitude and 78 4 to 79 east longitude in western Uttar
Pradesh. The city is known for its export of brass handicrafts to various countries across the world including North America and
Europe and is also known as Peetal Nagri (Brass City). A field survey was conducted in district Moradabad along with a public
interaction program on water related problems. A total of 108 representative villages covering all eight blocks of Moradabad district
were visited and interactions were held with the local population to find out the status of drinking water quality and associated
problems. The previous studies on surface and groundwater quality assessment of Moradabad district did not cover the entire area
or present the water quality awareness amongst the local population despite of the repeatedly complains about the yellow colour of
water.
Water quality of surface and groundwater has been assessed with respect to metal concentration using ICP-OES technique. Out of
the 64 water samples collected, copper, arsenic, lead and chromium concentrations were always within the permissible limits. While
iron concentration, more than 50% of the samples were beyond permissible limit. Maximum iron level in groundwater sample was
3820 ppb and that in surface water sample was 6294 ppb whereas the permissible limit is 300 ppb.
The overload of iron may cause severe health problems such as liver cancer, diabetes, cirrhosis of liver, diseases related to heart
and central nervous system, infertility etc. The presence of high concentration of iron leads to adverse changes in colour, odour and
taste of water and it also stains clothes and utensils. However, the local health authoritys records are not available.
2017 National Water Research Center. Production and hosting by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC
BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

Keywords: Water quality; Iron content; Field survey; ICP-OES technique

Corresponding author at: Shriram Institute for Industrial Research, 9-University Road, New Delhi 110007, India.
E-mail addresses: environment.vip14@gmail.com (V. Kumar), gurupawanbharti@gmail.com (P.K. Bharti), meenu@shriraminstitute.org
(M. Talwar), aktyagi@shriraminstitute.org (A.K. Tyagi).
Peer review under responsibility of National Water Research Center.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.wsj.2017.02.003
1110-4929/ 2017 National Water Research Center. Production and hosting by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND
license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
 V. Kumar et al. / Water Science 31 (2017) 4451 45

1. Introduction

District Moradabad situated in western Uttar Pradesh region of India is famous for the manufacturing of brass
handicrafts. Moradabad district occupies 3493 km2 area and had the population of about 4.8 million according to
census 2011. Majority of population utilizes groundwater for domestic, agriculture and industrial purposes. Some
villages near the bank of Ramganga and Gangan river utilize river water for agricultural practices. Fast population
growth, urbanization and industrialization have imposed pressure on the natural resources. The disposal of industrial
effluent into the water bodies without adequate treatment is the major cause of the environmental pollution (McLaughlin
et al., 1999). Apart from the metal handicraft manufacturing industries, electronic waste recycling and metal waste
recycling is being carried out on the banks of Ramganga River in Moradabad. The waste is being dumped into the
ground and in the drains without any treatment. Considering the non-judicious disposal of wastes, the environmental
monitoring of this region becomes very necessary.
Both quality and quantity of water limits its usage. Polluted water can be a serious threat to human health (Rawat
and Arora, 1986). Urbanization and conventional landfills leads to deterioration of the groundwater quality and poor
drainage system impairs the surface water quality. Sinha and Kumar (2006) have carried out trace metal monitoring
in Gangan river water at Moradabad. The river water was found to be excessively contaminated with copper, lead and
iron. Gangwar et al. (2012) have reported that the water quality of river Ramganga in Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh is unfit
for drinking purposes as a result of the discharging of domestic and industrial wastewater into the river and also other
anthropogenic activities around the river.
Iron is the fourth most abundant element making up 5.6% of earths crust. Iron contamination of water can either
be geogenic or via industrial effluents and domestic waste. Iron containing water after reacting with tea and coffee
appears inky black (Colter and Mahler, 2006). Iron is an essential element for haemoglobin, myoglobin and a number of
enzymes and its deficiency lead to anaemia and loss of well-being. However, its overload causes severe health problems
in human beings such as liver cancer, diabetes, cirrhosis of liver, heart diseases and infertility etc. The presence of
higher concentrations of iron changes colour, taste, odour of water, leaving stains on clothes and corrodes water pipe
lines (Behera et al., 2012).
In the present study, the water quality has been assessed with respect to iron contamination by real time profiling and
also by interaction with local population. Moradabad district comprises of 8 blocks as shown in Fig. 1. Before starting
the water sample collection for real time profiling and interaction with local population, the location of industries,
drainage system and river bodies were thoroughly studied.
The objective behind carrying out both the quantitative estimation of water in the laboratory and qualitative assess-
ment of water quality through interaction with local population is to have data from two sources which complement
each other in highlighting the same problem of poor water quality with respect to iron contamination.

2. Materials and methods

2.1. Interaction with local people

Field survey was carried out covering all eight blocks and 108 villages to get the public feedback on water quality.
Survey was carried out by interaction with local community and filling up of a detailed questionnaire related to
water related issues. The questionnaire used for gathering information from the local population where about 159
questionnaires were filled after interacting with 549 people locally (Fig. 2).

2.2. Near/real time proling

A total of 64 surface water and groundwater samples were collected in pre-cleaned high density polyethylene
(HDPE) bottles as per the standard methods. Samples were preserved using nitric acid and maintained at 10 2 C
temperature (BIS 3025 part 1(2003) and APHA (2012) 21st edition). Water samples were analyzed in the laboratory
for iron concentration using Inductively Coupled Plasma-Optical Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-OES) within three days
of sample collection.
The quantitative estimation was carried out in the instrument laboratory in the institute. It is important to mention
here that the institute is ISO 9001 and NABL certified. The estimation of water quality is being carried out regularly
46 V. Kumar et al. / Water Science 31 (2017) 4451

Fig. 1. Map of study area; Moradabad District showing all blocks and major rivers.

at the institute using standard protocol. The instruments are regularly calibrated and before each run, standards are run
in the instrument to ensure accurate results. All analysis was performed multiple times to ensure reproducibility.

3. Results and discussion

3.1. Field survey

The water quality data collected through interaction with 549 of the local community in 108 villages has been
compiled and illustrated in Figs. 3 and 4. Feedback taken on two major aspects: whether any problem exists related to
water quality such as taste, odour, and colour and whether water is coloured or becomes coloured on storage has been
presented in these figures. 59% of the villagers (Fig. 3) have water related problems and 57% (Fig. 4) complained of
yellow colour of the water. The colour change on storage and yellow colour of water indicates iron contamination in
water samples collected from these villages. The feedback of villagers towards colour change problem summarized in
Table 1 shows that all the blocks have the problem of colour change of water indicating contamination of water in all
blocks of the Moradabad district.

3.2. Water quality analysis

The total 64 water samples collected from all over the Moradabad district covering all eight blocks were analyzed
for iron concentration and the results are given in Fig. 5. Fig. 5 shows that most of the samples have iron contamination
beyond the permissible limit (WHO) of 300 ppb. For surface water samples, hotspots were identified as Daswan Ghat,
Hredeopur village and Fazalpur industrial area where the concentration of iron varies from 729 to 6294 ppb. For
groundwater, Daswan Ghat, Hredeopur village, Fazalpur industrial area, Mansoori colony and Sir Sayyad Nagar were
 V. Kumar et al. / Water Science 31 (2017) 4451 47

Quality of Water and Analysis: Local community

Date: .

1. Name: ............................................................................................
2. Address: ........................................................................................
3. Block: .......................................... 4. Village: .................................
5. Source of Water: (Well) (River) (Pond) (Hand pump) (Supply) (other)
6. Water related issue: (Yes) (No)
7. If yes than what: ...............
8. Colour of Water:(Black) (Yellow) (Normal) (Others)
9. Odour in Water: (Yes) (No)
10. Taste of water: (Normal) (Bitter) (Sweet) (Other)
11. Water storage in: (Tank) (Earthen pot) (Bottle) (Bucket) (Other)
12. Colour change after storage: (Yes) (No)
13. Any treatment before use of water: (Yes) (No),
14. If yes what (R.O.) (U. V.)
15. Do you know about water pollution: (Yes) (No)
16. Do you know about the problems associated with contaminated water: (Yes) (NO)
17. Do you know that following disease can occur due to water pollution: (Yes) (No)
Skin pollution, Jaundice., Tooth problems., Bone problems.,
Stomach ailments.. and others.
18. Any industry nearby: ....................................................................
19. Whether industrial effluent treated or not:
20. Any river in the vicinity:
21. Whether ground and surface water is being polluted: (Yes) (No) (Dont Know)
22. Do you know about Copper or Chromium: (Yes) (No)
23. Awareness programs in village: (Frequently) (Hardly) (Never)
24. Any benefit from these:
25. Any suggestion: ...........................................................................................

Fig. 2. Questionnaire used to collect information from the local population about the quality of ground and surface water.

Fig. 3. Occurrence of water related problems in villages of Moradabad District as per feedback from local community. 59% of the local population
with whom interaction was held complained of water related problems.

Table 1
Water colour change problem in villages of Moradabad District.
Variables Blocks Total villages

B1 B2 B3 B4 B5 B6 B7 B8

Colour change 7 14 7 8 13 3 6 4 62
No change 6 2 4 2 18 5 4 5 46

B1. Thakurdwara, B2. Dilaari, B3. Chajlait, B4. Bhagatpur Tanda, B5. Moradabad Town, B6. Munda Pandey, B7. Deengarpur, B8. Bilaari.
Out of 108 villages, 62 villages had the problem of water being coloured.
48 V. Kumar et al. / Water Science 31 (2017) 4451

Colour Change

No Colour Change

43%

57%

Fig. 4. Occurrence of colour change in water in villages of Moradabad District as per feedback from local community. 57% of the local population
with whom interaction was held complained about water being coloured either from the source itself or it changed colour on storage.

identified as hotspots where the concentration of iron varies from 339 to 3820 ppb. Although iron contamination in
groundwater is a common problem but it is exaggerated due to anthropogenic activities like metal extraction from
waste and electronic waste, metal handicrafts and alloy manufacturing and dumping the waste underground or directly
into the river without any treatment.
Iron is added to brass to enhance its mechanical strength and produce hard &tough alloy. Near Fazalpur industrial
area concentration of iron in surface water was recorded as 6294 ppb. This can be due to alloy manufacturing industries
situated in this area. In Sir Sayyad Nagar people are engaged in metal extraction from industrial waste provided by
industries at no cost which has led to iron contamination in the groundwater. The concentration of iron was 3820 ppb
in groundwater sample collected from Sir Sayyad Nagar. The iron content recorded in the surface and groundwater
samples collected from various identified hotspots of Moradabad district are shown in Figs. 6 and 7.
Apart from the iron content, the chemical oxygen demand (COD) was also determined (Fig. 8). COD was found to
be 19.2 mg/l, 27.2 mg/land 41.6 mg/l at Mansoori colony, Hredeopur and Fazalpur Industrial Area respectively which
is much higher than the limit set by WHO guidelines; 10 mg/l indicating water contamination.

3.3. Interpretation of results

Iron is the most abundant element in the Earths crust. Iron reserves are found in several parts of India but iron
deposits are not reported in and around Moradabad district in Uttar Pradesh. Moradabad district is located towards
northern region of India and iron reserves are mainly reported to be available in southern parts of the country. No
available data on natural level of iron along the river basin studied, soil and groundwater.

7000
Concentration of Iron, ppb

Iron content, ppb

6000 Permissible Limit of iron, ppb

5000

4000

3000

2000

1000

0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41 43 45 47 49 51 53 55 57 59 61 63
Water Samples

Fig. 5. Iron content in water samples collected from Moradabad District ranged from 3 ppb to 6294 ppb. 57.8% samples showed iron content beyond
permissible limit of 300 ppb.
 V. Kumar et al. / Water Science 31 (2017) 4451 49

Fig. 6. Iron content found in surface water at identified hotspots of Moradabad district. Maximum iron content was 6294 ppb while permissible
limit is 300 ppb.

Fig. 7. Iron content found in groundwater at identified hotspots of Moradabad District. Maximum iron content was 3820 ppb while permissible limit
is 300 ppb.

Certain studies carried out around the world and in Moradabad have reported the iron content to be beyond per-
missible limit. Hossain et al. have reported that the concentration of iron in groundwater at Tangail was found in the
range 103024,500 ppb whereas the WHO standard level is 300 ppb. It has been suggested to make use of alternate
drinking water sources by the local population and avoid the water sources having high concentration of iron (Hossain
et al., 2013). Bichi has analyzed the heavy metal pollution in surface and groundwater along river Tatsawarki in Kano,
Nigeria (Bichi and Bello, 2013). According to their study, 1500 ppb concentration of iron was found in the ground-
water and 1000 ppb in surface water. Although, this water can be used for irrigation but it is not suitable for drinking
purpose. Rastogi and Sinha (2008) have studied the presence of iron in groundwater samples collected from five sites
of Moradabad and have reported the iron levels to be 10203852 ppb at these sites. According to the present study,

45 41.6
DO BOD COD
40
35
Concentration (ppm)

30 27.2
25
19.2
20
15
10 6
8 7.5 6.1
2.73 3.5 4 3.8
5 1.6
0.26 0.1 0.1
0
Daswan Ghat Hredeopur Fazalpur Ind. Mansoori Sir Sayyad
Village Colony Nagar

Fig. 8. COD is higher than permissible limit of 10 ppm, which indicates organic pollution load.
50 V. Kumar et al. / Water Science 31 (2017) 4451

iron levels in groundwater were found to be 5773820 ppb. Another study by Sinha et al. on Gangan river water has
brought out the iron levels to be as high as 984015,850 ppb in certain sites of Moradabad in and around Gangan river.
As reported in the paper, there are metal handicraft based industries in Moradabad districts, which dispose off their
waste injudiciously either in ground or in rivers. Also, e-waste processing is being carried out along the banks of the
rivers and the waste is discarded along river banks or into the river. These practices are responsible for water and soil
contamination.
The iron content found in surface and groundwater of Moradabad district is close to that found in other countries
and in Moradabad.
The present study is an attempt to bring out the water quality scenario of Moradabad district. This study is part of
a project sponsored by NCSTC, DST, GOI and the outcome of this study will be brought out in the form of a manual
which will be circulated amongst all the stakeholders including the policy makers. The objective of this study is science
communication to the masses to create awareness and also to share results with all the concerned government bodies
so that the necessary policies can come into place and solutions can be provided to the local population.
The local population has expressed concern regarding colour and taste of water and is aware of poor water quality.
Iron contamination in both ground and surface water either makes the water yellow on storage or as such and also imparts
a metallic taste to the water. Due to non availability of alternate source of water nearby and incomplete knowledge on
toxic effects of using the iron contaminated water as such, they are forced to consume the iron contaminated water.
Even though, the local people suffer from abdominal problems but they do not get it diagnosed and continue the use of
contaminated water. The local authorities do not have data on the presence of iron in water and so are not of any help.
The people would welcome any technological intervention that can be provided to solve the problem of water quality.
The levels of iron found in surface and groundwater samples taken from Moradabad district area suggest high
contamination of water bodies with respect to iron. The findings are corroborated by the feedback taken from the
local community. The results are alarming and there is an immediate need for providing solutions to the population
residing in Moradabad district area. It is very necessary to create awareness amongst the local community and provide
them means for water purification prior to its consumption. There are various simple methods reported for iron
removal from water such as filtration through hydrogel based devices and use of ultra filtration membranes. The local
government must empower the population with the means to purify the available water before using it to meet their daily
needs.

4. Conclusion

It was concluded that 37 out of the collected 64 water samples were having iron content beyond permissible limit
of 300 ppb. The maximum iron content was found to be 6294 ppb in Gangan river water near Fazalpur industrial area.
The local community of Moradabad has given the feedback that either the water is yellow in colour as available in
certain areas or it turns yellow on storage. Water bodies all over Moradabad district are polluted with iron and the
local people are compelled to drink polluted water. The contamination of water bodies in Moradabad district is evident
from the results presented in this paper. Thus, there is a need for taking strong steps to provide clean water to the local
community.
The objective of this study is science communication so that awareness can be created amongst the local population,
industry owners, e-waste processors so that they understand the hazards of unsafe practices of dumping waste in ground
or in water bodies without prior treatment and look for alternatives. Another objective is to communicate the health
of water sources to policy makers so that adequate steps can be taken to provide alternate sources of water, water
purification systems, effluent treatment plants.
In order to control the pollution of water bodies, it is very necessary to install effluent treatment plants in the district
and to enforce their usage. To avoid the toxic effects of water from contaminated sources, it is necessary to make use
of water purification devices, which can be provided in the villages by government bodies.

Acknowledgements

Authors acknowledge with thanks the financial assistance received from DST and management of SRI for their
support for carrying out this study.
 V. Kumar et al. / Water Science 31 (2017) 4451 51

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