Toxic Chromium Contaminates Groundwater Near Nashik Industrial Area

What Happened

Groundwater in the Dattanagar residential area next to the Ambad industrial estate in Nashik has been found heavily contaminated with chromium, turning bright yellow in borewells and causing severe skin ulcers, rashes, and swollen lymph nodes among roughly 400 residents. Laboratory tests commissioned by the South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers and People and conducted by Ashwamedh Engineers and Consultants found total chromium at 50.5 milligrams per litre, with hexavalent chromium at 50.3 milligrams per litre—more than 1,000 times the Bureau of Indian Standards permissible limit of 0.05 milligrams per litre. A separate analysis by the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board found chromium at 45 milligrams per litre, about 900 times the safe drinking limit.

Impact On Residents

Working-class residents, many employed in the nearby industrial estate, report spending between 5,000 and 6,000 rupees a month on private medical treatment and alternative housing. Gangubai Laxmigan Shivale, 55, says she has been feeding her family on outside food for two months because her hands are covered in bleeding rashes. Other residents like Kunti Balu Sarkate and Preeti Shah describe mounting financial distress, social discrimination from people and school teachers fearing contagion, and disrupted daily routines. Following the contamination disclosure, the Nashik Municipal Corporation sealed borewells and arranged tanker water, though residents report that supplies remain irregular and insufficient.

Official Stance and Action

The National Human Rights Commission has taken suo motu cognizance of the situation based on media reports. Meanwhile, Maharashtra minister and Nashik guardian minister Girish Mahajan claims the yellow chemical is not carcinogenic, and Vidyasagar Killedar, regional officer of the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board, asserts that groundwater contamination is unlikely to affect the Godavari river, which is 150 to 200 feet deep. However, activists dispute this, pointing out that chromium has been detected in connected streams and rivers. The Bombay High Court ordered the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation to set up common effluent treatment plants following a 2012 petition by activist Rajesh Pandit, but deadlines for completion have been missed.

Context

Hexavalent chromium is classified as a Group 1 carcinogen by the World Health Organisation's International Agency for Research on Cancer. Industrial clusters often face challenges with effluent management when small-scale units lack individual treatment facilities and legal mandates for shared processing plants face delays. This situation highlights the recurring public health tensions that arise when industrial waste disposal compromises local water safety in densely populated urban peripheries.