There are guidelines which are well developed under BIS that addresses to the safety, quality and reliability of the drinking in the country of India. The Quality Standards, as outlined under IS 10500, act as reference points with regard to fitness of water for human consumption.
Activities being carried out commonly by water utilities, Water Quality Standards set by BIS have the following key objectives:
The BIS water quality standards aim to:
1.Preserve human health by establishing the allowable degree of pollutants in water intended for human consumption.
2.Provide for the continued supply of important needs such as; clean and safe drinking water to the people.
3.Encourage appropriate behavior and conformity on the part of water suppliers and treatment plants.
Measurement Criteria Observed under the BIS Regulations
Considering water qualities the BIS has classified the parameters into several important groups each of which consists of factors important to safety and health, important to injestion and susceptible to contamination. These include:
1. : A combination of the changes in the organoleptic and physical characters determine the acceptability of a food related product; the physical characters include texture, temperature, color, consistency, shape and size.
Color: Should not exceed the value of 5 hazy units in order to meet the basic criteria for contrast with water.
Odor: To be considered safe water it must have no smell at all.
Taste: It should have no strange tastes at all.
pH Range: It should be low acidic and high alkaline, but it should range from 6.5-8.5.
2. Chemical Parameters
Strict chemical limits are in place to reduce health risks from long-term exposure to harmful substances:
Total dissolved solids (TDS): PDF Only is allowed to be up to 500 mg/L, mainly for palatability purposes.
Nitrate: Set at 45 mg/L because it reduces health risks such as methemoglobinemia.
Iron: They should not surpass 0.3 mg/L since they cause color change and provision of a metallic taste.
Fluoride: To prevent dental and skeletal fluorosis should be maintained between 1.0- 1.5 mg/L.
3. Toxic Substances
The BIS ensures stringent control over toxic elements such as:
Arsenic: Primary standard is set at 0.01 mg/L because long-term effects of these materials are detrimental to human health.
Lead: Tomorrow limited to 0.01 milligrams per liter because of neurotoxicity to humans and children in particular.
Mercury: Set at 0.001 mg/L because of the toxicity of this metal in human health.
4. Bacteriological Parameters
The BIS mandates that water should be free of:
E. coli and coliform bacteria to prevent water borne diseases such as cholera or typhoid and thus be safe to consumer uses.
Compliance and Monitoring
To meet BIS standards, water suppliers and stakeholders must:
Take water samples for testing through recognized laboratory at frequent intervals.
Apply integrated water purification processes (filters, reverse osmosis, chemical addition) in order to overcome problems such as pollution.
It is recommended to perform frequent audits in order to assess the levels of compliance with the established recommendations.
Reassurance of Quality
Otherwise, as the BIS water quality standards aim not only at the consumer’s health but also at the confidence in water management systems. In this way, since the identified norms are complied with, the stakeholders contribute to the supply of clean drinking water needed for the improvement of people’s quality of life within the mentioned communities.
Additional and precise policy information relating to Guidelines should be sought from Bureau of Indian Standards IS 10500 guidelines.
Measurement Criteria observed under the BIS Regulations
It is with regard to water qualities that BIS has classified the parameters into the following important groups, each of which is again divided into factors important to safety and health, important to ingestion and contaminated.