Detailed study report of Samta, one of the arsenic-affected villages of Jessore District, Bangladesh

In Bangladesh, arsenic in groundwater above 0.05 mg/l, the maximum permissible limit laid down by WHO, was found in 41 out of 64 districts. People suffering from arsenicosis have been identified in 20 districts out of the 21 districts we have surveyed so far. To know the magnitude of the calamity, i...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Current science (Bangalore) 1998-01, Vol.74 (2), p.134-145
Main Authors: Biswas, Bhajan K., Dhar, Ratan K., Samanta, Gautam, Mandal, Badal K., Chakraborti, Dipankar, Faruk, Imtiaz, Islam, Kazi Saiful, Chowdhury, Md. Moniruzzaman, Islam, Ashraful, Roy, Shibtosh
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adults
Arsenic
Arsenic compounds
Groundwater
Hair
Lesions
Potable water
RESEARCH ARTICLE
Skin
Urine
Villages
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Summary:In Bangladesh, arsenic in groundwater above 0.05 mg/l, the maximum permissible limit laid down by WHO, was found in 41 out of 64 districts. People suffering from arsenicosis have been identified in 20 districts out of the 21 districts we have surveyed so far. To know the magnitude of the calamity, it was necessary to survey thousands of villages in the 41 districts. To get an idea about the situation, we surveyed in detail one village, 'Samta', in Jessore district, having a population of 4841. All the tubewells in the village were analysed for arsenic. A few hundred hair, nail and urine samples were analysed as well to know the arsenic burden on the population. Furthermore, 600 people were examined for arsenical dermatosis. We have attempted a statistical interpretation of the data.
ISSN:0011-3891