Shillong, June 18 : An official investigation into
the death of thousands of fish in a river near Indo-Bangladesh
border in Meghalaya's remote West Khasi Hills district says it
did not find any "specific chemical level" in the water that
would poison fish even as it warned that water is "unsafe" for
drinking.
Seven out of eight samples collected from different
locations along the Kynshi river and its feeding streams show
"non-indicative of pollution in terms of physio-chemical and
pesticides assessment", a probe report, conducted by Meghalaya
State Pollution Control Board (MSPCB), said.
An observation on water sample collected from Wahplu
stream indicated a "significant deterioration of water quality
characterised by low pH level (highly acidic) and high
concentration of iron and sulphate.
"Scientists suspect that the mine run-off caused by
coal mining activities along the catchment areas of Wahplu
stream as the reason behind the pollution in the river.
The water at Wahplu also appeared "yellowish red", a
phenomenon caused by acid effluents draining from the coal
mines in Nongkulang area, the report said.
Scientists, however, ruled out the adverse impact that
Wahplu stream will have on River Kulang, where it flows to, as
the water discharge of the former is "less significant" as
compared to the latter.
Water samples collected downstream the point of
confluence of Wahplu stream and river Wahblei showed that the
acidity and mineral content was normal again.
The report also said there was no specific chemical(s)
at a level that would cause the death of fishes in all seven
samples except that of Wahplu river.
The MSPCB has cautioned that the water samples have
bacterial counts "beyond" permissible limits and hence not
suitable for drinking without pre-treatment.