ABSTRACT
Groundwater is essential to secure the safety of water supply in Vadodara, Gujarat. In this study, groundwater samples were collected from various part of the city which separated in 12 wards. The present study contains analyses of 720 groundwater samples gathered from various tube and open wells and analyzed for fluoride and other physicochemical parameters during 2014 and 2019. The results indicated that fluoride and TDS were high and the overall water quality was poor in the study area. Gastrointestinal and other health-related issues increased due to higher TDS in east, north and northeast regions. Likewise, hierarchical cluster analysis also indicated that TDS and chloride-rich water. Fluoride concentration was observed in the range of 0.66-1.61 mg/l (2014) and 0.86-1.77 mg/l (2019) which indicates that 62% samples are unfit for drinking purpose, which could cause dental and skeletal fluorosis. The water quality index (WQI) indicated lack of excellent water in the studied area in the last half-decade. As per WQI calculation suggest that 82.12% (2014) and 69.00% (2019) of groundwater samples represent poor, very poor and unsuitable categories, whereas remaining 17.85% (2014) and 31.00% (2019) of the samples represent good category for drinking purposes in entire Vadodara, Gujarat. Marginal improvement in the groundwater quality is reported due to good rainfall in 2019. Health risks associated with high fluoride drinking water were assessed for various age groups of inhabitants such as children, infants and adults. The non-carcinogenic hazard quotient estimated by oral intake was 1.38-3.36 (2014) and 1.79-3.70 (2019) for infants; 0.69-1.68 (2014) and 0.90-1.85 (2019) for children, whereas 0.07-0.18 (2014) and 0.10-0.20 (2019) for adults. Therefore, infant and children are relatively at higher health risk due to the intake of fluoride-rich drinking water than adult in the studied region. Both indices were indicated contaminated water or closer to contamination which induced non-carcinogenic health risk on citizens. Thus, the comprehensive results of present study can be used as a baseline data and valuable tool for government authorities for long-term monitoring, health monitoring and sustainable development of Vadodara, Gujarat.
