Access to safe water is a human right and a policy goal in many nations (Bain et al., 2020). Water is vital to human life and all life on earth as it is used within household for drinking, domestic use, for farming purposes and for industry and other applications, including commercial uses (Varma et al., 2020). Poor water quality often threatens the ecosystems functions, agricultural output, human well-being, and economic development. Degrading water affects the environment, society, and economy of many nations (Ezbakhe, 2018). The pollutant concentrations in water used for drinking are a worldwide problem that has become a major hazard to individuals in the twenty-first century. (Schwarzenbach, 2010). Geogenic contamination is one of the human-aggravated factors. Poor human waste disposal is another contributory factor and is very predominant in rural communities in India (Jonnala et al., 2020).
The UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 2030 agenda includes global goals for water, sanitation, and hygiene. SDG 6 aims to ’ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all’ to address water quality issues. Concerns with water quality are addressed by SDG indicator 6.1, safely managed drinking water (SMDW) services. SMDW services are improved sources of clean, contaminant-free drinking water that is accessible on-site (Marchese et al., 2018, WHO, 2017).
According to baseline data for SDG 6, only one-fourth of the world's population has access to clean drinking water (WHO & UNICEF 2017). Furthermore, there is a stark divide between urban and rural access to 'improved' and ‘safe' sources (UNICEF & WHO, 2019). According to the Joint Monitoring Program (JMP), two billion people worldwide do not have access to SMDW, with Sub-Saharan Africa and Central and South Asia having the highest rates (WHO & UNICEF, 2017). Polluted water is more likely to host cholera-causing Vibrio and Schistosomiasis (Rahman et al., 2018).
Given its connections to important environmental, socioeconomic, and development issues, the challenges of water quality are addressed in other SDGs, including those dealing with poverty reduction, health, ecosystems, and sustainable consumption and production. Thus multiple SDGs' emphasis on water quality reflects the growing need to improve global water quality (Ezbakhe, 2018).
Development activities pollute both surface and underground water sources (Chandra et al., 2014). Toxics percolating from the soil to ground water may contaminate drinking water (Khan et al., 2012).
In India like others, the growing threat to groundwater quality posed by anthropogenic activities have become a major source of worry in recent years. Reportedly, groundwater overexploitation degrades water quality in India (Mondal et al., 2005), which occupies 2.2 percent of the world's land, 4 percent of its water resources, and 16 percent of the global population. It is observed that India faces the most serious water shortage issues in the twenty-first century. Bacteria, fluoride, salinity, and arsenic all have an impact on water quality in India. There have been reports of contamination due to nitrates, silica, uranium, lead, and other substances recently (Rajawat et al., 2016, Kamra et al. 2002; Négrel et al. 2007; Saleem, Hussain, and Mahmood 2016). Consuming contaminated water poses health risks and it is reported that 57.20 percent of death waterborne diseases in India are due to unsafe water consumption (GBD, 2019). Reportedly, rural Indians spend at least Rs.100 per year on water and sanitation-related diseases. According to the Government of India, this amounts to Rs.6,700 crore each year, barely Rs.52 crore less than the country’s Central Health Ministry's yearly budget and more than the allocation for education (Narain 2002; Khurana et al, 2008). The main difficulty is identifying these contaminant at low and trace levels and developing a mitigation plan. (Bajpai et al., 2019).
People in India mostly use shared water sources for drinking, domestic and other non-domestic uses, where these water sources mainly include groundwater, water from nearby rivers, ponds, and harvested rainwater. The reliance on untreated sources is partly attributed to the irregularity and inconsistency of pipe water distribution systems (Yadhunath et al., 2020). To maintain water supplies, quality, and ensure a balance between usage and sustainability, competent monitoring and management are required.
In India and other developing nations, the emphasis is on ensuring that everyone get access to clean water, as chemical pollution detection is rare and crucial institutional capacities are either nonexistent locally or are insufficient. Water supply is a national issue, whereas pollution is a local issue with ramifications for policy and actions. State governments are unaware of which types of pollution are more significant adversely affecting the economy and public health and have a poor understanding of the relative relevance of many different types of pollution (Abbaspour et al., 2007).