RESEARCH DOI: 10.
1007/s002670010238
Surface Water Pollution in Three Urban Territories
of Nepal, India, and Bangladesh
SUNIL KUMAR KARN*
HIDEKI HARADA
Department of Environmental Systems Engineering
Nagaoka University of Technology
1603-1, Kamitomioka machi
Nagaoka City, 940-2188, Japan
ABSTRACT / In South Asian countries such as Nepal, India,
and Bangladesh, pollution of rivers is more severe and critical
near urban stretches due to huge amounts of pollution load
discharged by urban activities. The Bagmati River in the Kath-
mandu valley, the Yamuna River at Delhi, and peripheral rivers
(mainly Buriganga River) of Dhaka suffer from severe pollution
these days. The observed dry season average of biochemical
oxygen demand (BOD) in all these rivers is in the range of
For several decades, developing countries have been
leading the world in the pace of urbanization. During
1990 –1995, the average annual urbanization rate in
developing countries, including South Asian, were over
3.4% compared to only 0.7% in developed countries
(UN 1996). While urbanization is often an integral part
of development, rapid and unplanned growth may re-
sult in a wide impact on natural resources and the
environment. In the water sector, it can cause two types
of impacts: high demand for fresh water and serious
pollution of the available water resources. Water pollu-
tion and freshwater depletion are currently viewed as
the top environmental problem in Asian region (ADB
1997). The United Nations estimates that economic
cost of environmental deterioration due to water pol-
lution is very severe in the Asia–Pacific region in terms
of restoring the quality of life and installing controls
(UN 1998). In the context of the South Asian region,
specifically in Nepal, India, and Bangladesh, pollution
of surface waters has become more severe and critical
near the urban areas due to high pollution loads dis-
charged within short stretches of rivers from urban
activities. Failure to provide adequate urban sanitary
infrastructures to keep pace with the current rate of
urbanization and a lack of formulation of plans and
KEY WORDS: South Asia; Water pollution; Urbanization; Wastewater
treatment; Sewerage; Sanitation
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Environmental Management Vol. 28, No. 4, pp. 483– 496
20 –30 mg/liter and total coliform are as high as 104–105
MPN/100 ml. Per capita pollution load discharge of urban ar-
eas has been estimated to be about 31, 19, and 25 gBOD/
capita/day in Bagmati, Yamuna, and the rivers of Dhaka, re-
spectively. Regression analysis reveals pollution loads steadily
increasing nearly in step with the trend in urbanization. The
dissolved oxygen (DO) level of the Bagmati and Buriganga
rivers is declining at an average annual rate of nearly 0.3 mg/
liter/year. Unplanned urbanization and industrialization occur-
ring in these cities may be largely responsible for this grave
situation. Inadequate sewerage, on-site sanitation, and waste-
water treatment facilities in one hand, and lack of effective
pollution control measures and their strict enforcement on the
other are the major causes of rampant discharge of pollutants
in the aquatic systems.
effective implementation of necessary pollution control
measures are leading to worsening of the situation. The
main objectives of this article are to present the current
status and trend in surface water pollution and to iden-
tify the major sources and causes of pollution in the
urban territories in the context of three South Asian
urban areas, namely; Dhaka in Bangladesh, Delhi in
India, and Kathmandu valley in Nepal.
Data and Methods
This paper is mainly based on the analysis of second-
ary data and information collected from various agen-
cies, primarily from concerned governmental agencies
and their publications and from the studies by nongov-
ernmental organizations. Since this study required of a
lot of data and information, the authors visited to all of
these countries for detailed data collection and thus
also saw for themselves the pollution of surface waters
in the region. Major data sources on water quality used
in this analysis are as follows. The data for the periods
1992–1995 and 1997–1998 of Bagmati River are from
the Department of Hydrology and Meteorology (DHM)
and Ministry of Population and Environment (MOPE),
respectively, in Nepal. The data for the period 1984 –
1995 and 1996 –1998 of Yamuna River were obtained
from Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and
National River Conservation Directorate (NRCD), re-
spectively, in India. The data on the rivers around
Dhaka for the period 1980 –1998 [including data be-
© 2001 Springer-Verlag New York Inc.
484 S. K. Karn and H. Harada
Figure 1. River and drainage system in Kathmandu valley.
longing to the Department of Environment (DOE)]
were obtained from the Fourth Dhaka Water Supply
Project (FDWSP) of the Dhaka Water Supply And Sew-
erage Authority (DWASA) in Bangladesh. As the data
came from several sources, they differed in their fre-
quency of observation. For instance, data obtained
from DHM and NRCD were on a mean monthly basis,
whereas DOE data was on seasonal (dry and wet sea-
son) basis; from CPCB was average annual data. Thus,
since the seasonal or annual data were already in con-
solidated form, they have been reproduced in many
cases as is, while monthly data may have been converted
into seasonal or annual. As this paper is mainly aimed at
presenting the status and trend of pollution, some rel-
evant statistical analyses such as correlation and regres-
sion methods have been employed in order to illustrate
some phenomena. In other cases, an attempt has been
made to present the situation mainly by using factual
data or values after descriptive statistical analysis.
Study Area Description
Water Resources
The entire territory of Kathmandu valley is fed and
drained exclusively by the Bagmati River, which origi-
nates at the northern boundary of the Kathmandu
Valley mountains and then flows southwards across the
Kathmandu valley urban areas. Besides many small
catchment drains, Bishnumati, Dhobi khola, Mana-
hara, and Hanumante are some of the tributaries of the
Bagmati in the valley, and they flow across the different
parts of urban areas (Figure 1). The Bagmati is the
principal source of municipal water in the valley, pro-
viding almost 92% and 60% of wet and dry season water
supply, respectively; of other uses include irrigation and
industrial (CBS 1998). Due to monsoon-type rainfall
and the small catchment in the valley (545 km2 at
Chovar), discharge of the Bagmati becomes very low, as
low as 2 m3/sec, in dry season (refer to the hydrograph
 Water Pollution in Nepal, India, and Bangladesh
of the Bagmati in Figure 9 below). Water use of the
Bagmati has been estimated to be 66%, for irrigation,
31% for water supply, and 3% for industrial use (MHPP
1994). The Bagmati also has great religious and cul-
tural importance for Hindus. From its origin to the
point where it leaves the valley, the Bagmati traverses
some 35 km distance, of which nearly 20 km falls within
the densely populated urban areas.
The state of Delhi, sprawling over an area of about
1483 km2, is situated on the west bank of the Yamuna
river, the largest tributary of the Ganges in India.
Nearly 22 km of the Yamuna between Wazirabad to
Okhla lies within the well-urbanized area of Delhi. Of a
total 1367-km length of the Yamuna, the middle 736-km
portion between Tajewala to Etawah is heavily utilized
for irrigation, municipal water supply, and other uses
[7560, 335, and 163 million cubic meters (MCM) per
year, respectively]. In Delhi itself, about 275 MCM/yr
water is abstracted for the municipal water supply by
Wazirabad and Chandrawal waterworks and 1500
MCM/yr for irrigation through the Agra canal at Okhla
(CPCB 1996 cited in CSE 1997). In total, the Yamuna
contributes 68% of the total municipal water supply of
Delhi (WWF-India 1995). The Yamuna is also regarded
as one of the sacred rivers in India, where people
perform many ritual and religious activities, including
bathing. Due to monsoon rainfall in the region, dis-
charge of Yamuna also varies seasonally and dry
weather flow falls down to 20 m3/sec (refer to flow
hydrograph in Figure 8 below). There are about 18
drainage channels, however, emptying into the Yamuna
within Delhi stretch, carrying drainage and municipal
wastewater from around Delhi (Figure 2).
Dhaka is located on the upper alluvial deposits
upstream of the confluence of two major rivers, the
Brahmaputra and Meghana, in Bangladesh. The
Greater Dhaka urban area is surrounded by a chain
of rivers—Turag, Buriganga and Dhaleshwori in the
west and southwest, Balu and Lakhya in the east, and
Tongi Khal (a drainage channel) in the north con-
necting River Balu and Turag (Figure 3). These riv-
ers are mainly fed by local catchment rainfalls but
also receive spills from the Brahmaputra and
Meghana rivers, especially in the wet season. Mean
monthly discharge in the Turag varies from 300 to
400 m3/sec in the dry season to around 700 –900
m3/sec in the wet season. Flow in the Lakhya River,
however, remains higher than in Turag, ranging
from about 400 m3/sec in the dry to 2000 m3/sec
during the wet periods (DWASA 1997). Within the
urban area, there also exists about 20 drainage chan-
nels (locally named as khals) that carry all the drain-
age and wastewater of the urban areas and discharge
485
into one of the peripheral rivers. The rivers in Dhaka
have been primarily used for communication pur-
poses, but also serve domestic, industrial, and recre-
ational uses. For the municipal water supply sector,
however, its share has remained at only about 2% of
total supply. The water treatment plant at Chandan-
ighat is the only such system; it produces 17 million
liters per day (MLD) of drinking water drawn from
the Buriganga River.
Urbanization and Industrialization
All three cities have always drawn people due to their
strategic location, historical importance, better lifestyle,
and ample opportunities in employment, commerce
and industry, education, and politics. In recent de-
cades, however, urbanization in Delhi and Dhaka seems
to have been triggered after independence of their
respective countries, i.e., since 1950 and 1970s, respec-
tively. In the Kathmandu valley, urbanization started
later, in the 1980s. During 1981–1991, Kathmandu val-
ley, Delhi, and Dhaka had annual growth rates of
6.15%, 3.92% and 7.11%, respectively, and the present
populations of Delhi (urban), Greater Dhaka Metro-
politan area, and Kathmandu valley urban (municipal-
ities of Kathmandu, Lalitpur and Bhaktapur cities) are
estimated at 1, 12.6, and 10 million, respectively, and
average annual growth rates are 3.96%, 4.54%, and
4.39%, respectively (Figure 4).
Not only the population but also industrial and com-
mercial activities have expanded tremendously in these
cities. The total number of industrial units in Delhi has
increased from 8000 in 1950 to nearly 93,000 in 1993–
1994 (MUAE 1996). More than half (2174 of 4271) of
all manufacturing establishments in Nepal are concen-
trated in the Kathmandu valley (Devkota and Neupane
1994). Likewise, about 11,790 (44.5%) industries of
26446 in Bangladesh were present in Dhaka by 1992
(BBS 1997).
State of Surface Water Pollution
The data reveal widespread pollution of aquatic re-
sources in all these cities as indicated by the presence of
pollutants ranging from organic and pathogenic con-
tamination to heavy metals and pesticides. Our empha-
sis is mainly on organic and pathogenic (total and fecal
coliforms) pollution and less on heavy metals.
Water Quality Profile of Urban Rivers
The data as published by the Department of Hydrol-
ogy and Meteorology of Nepal for the period 1992–
1995 (monthly data) of the Bagmati river had several
missing values and therefore, the pollution profile of
486 S. K. Karn and H. Harada
the river is viewed as an aggregate of all three years of
data. As the Bagmati traverses a 13-km urbanized seg-
ment in the valley between Gokarna and Sundarighat,
mean biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) has in-
creased from 3.8 mg/liter (standard deviation, SD, ⫾
1.7) to 30 ⫾ (16.8) mg/liter and dissolved oxygen
(DO) fell from 7.7 ⫾ 1.4 to 1.7 ⫾ 1.8 mg/liter (Figure
5). Since the DHM data contained no information on
coliform concentrations, it was obtained from a study
by the Ministry of Housing and Physical Planning, Ne-
pal. As shown in the Figure 5, the average of dry and
wet season data revealed increases in total and fecal
coliform from 1.0 ⫻ 104 to 8.75 ⫻ 103 and from 6.4 ⫻
Figure 2. Yamuna River and drainage from
Delhi urban area.
106 to 6.2 ⫻ 106 MPN/100 ml, respectively, in the same
segment. Recent pollution levels however, is much
higher than before. The 1998 data reveal average an-
nual chemical oxygen demand (COD), BOD, and DO
at Sundarighat to be 136 ⫾ 80, 43 ⫾ 27, and 2.3 ⫾ 2.2
mg/liter, respectively (MOPE 1998, NESS 1998).
In Yamuna River, as of 1997, average annual BOD at
Palla (U/S of Delhi) and Okhla (D/S of Delhi) was to
1.3 ⫾ 0.5 mg/liter and 17 ⫾ 20 mg/liter, respectively.
In the same reach; DO declined from 7.4 ⫾ 1.6 mg/
liter to 1.2 ⫾ 1.4 mg/liter (Figure 6). Total coliform is
increased from 6 ⫻ 103 ⫾ 1.1 ⫻ 104 MPN/100 ml at
Palla to 7.84 ⫻ 105 ⫾ 1.1 ⫻ 106 MPN/100 ml at Okhla
 Water Pollution in Nepal, India, and Bangladesh 487

Figure 3. River and drainage system

around greater Dhaka.

Figure 4. Population and its growth

rates in Kathmandu valley, Delhi and
Dhaka (projected values for 2000 and
2010). Data source: CBS (1998), BBS
(1994), CSE (1999).

Barrage. Higher standard deviations at both Bagmati
and Yamuna are due to effects of drastic seasonal vari-
ations in the river flow and consequent impact on water
quality parameters; these are discussed in later sections.
In Dhaka, BOD and fecal coliform in all rivers on the
western side, i.e., Turag, Buriganga, and Dhaleswori,
are in the range 20 –30 mg/liter and 104–105 MPN/100
ml, respectively as of February 1998 (Figure 7A). How-
ever, DO has been severely affected in Buriganga, the
segment from Mirpur in Turag to the confluence of the
Buriganga with Dhaleswori. In this segment, DO drops
from 6 mg/liter to almost zero, i.e., completely de-
pleted. The situation is similar in the rivers on the
eastern side, i.e., Lakhya and Balu (Figure 7B). The
488 S. K. Karn and H. Harada
Figure 5. Average annual water quality profile of Bagmati in
Kathmandu valley during 1992–1995. Data source: DHM
(1996) (BOD and DO) and MHPP (1994) (T-coli).
Figure 6. Water quality of Yamuna in Delhi stretch as of 1997
(Wazirabad as of 1995). Data source: NRCD (1999) and CPCB
(1998).
BOD in the Balu near the outfall of Norai Khal is,
however, exceptionally high, i.e., 235 mg/liter in dry
season.
Seasonal Variation Pattern in Water Quality
Monsoon-type rainfall in the region results in
highly variable rivers discharge between monsoon
(June–September, very high flow) and dry months
(October–May, reduced flow). As pollution discharge
into the rivers never diminishes, the dry months
appear critically polluted in the absence of sufficient
dilution of pollutants. Monthly variation profiles of
water quality in the Bagmati and Yamuna clearly
reveal this state and depict the gravest situation of
pollution in the dry months when there is minimum
discharge into the River. As presented in Figures 8
and 9, DO is completely depleted in January–Febru-
ary in the Yamuna and in March–May in the Bagmati,
and DO be less than 4 mg/liter prevails for at least
four months in the Yamuna and six months in Bag-
Figure 7. (A) Dry season water quality of south-western rivers
of Dhaka (as of February 1998). Data source: DWASA (1998).
(B) Dry season water quality of eastern rivers of Dhaka (as of
February 1998). Data source: DWASA (1998).
Figure 8. Mean monthly flow and water quality of Yamuna at
Okhla, Delhi, 1998 (flow as of 1993–1994). Data source:
NRCD (1999) and CWC (1994 cited in Kazmi, 1996).
mati River. On the other hand, BOD increased to 90
mg/liter in Bagmati and 45 mg/liter in the Yamuna
in February. Despite the monsoon season and all
possible dilution, the minimum BOD in Bagmati re-
mains not less than 10 mg/liter, which means pollu-
tion load has exceeded the assimilative capacity of
the River.
Inland Water Quality Standards and Compliance
Reviewing existing water quality standards in the
three countries, it is found that the Yamuna River at
Delhi requires BOD of 3 mg/liter or less, DO 4 mg/
liter or more, and total coliform 5000 MPN/100 ml or
less (CPCB 1998). In Bangladesh, similarly, the Envi-
 Water Pollution in Nepal, India, and Bangladesh 489

Figure 10. Annual trend in BOD of Bagmati, Yamuna and

Figure 9. Mean monthly flow and water quality of Bagmati at Buriganga River. Data source for Bagmati: Pradhananga and
Sundarighat (as of 1998). Data source: MOPE (1998) and others (1987), DHM (1996), WECS (1997), and NESS (1998);
NESS (1998). for Yamuna: CPCB (1990a– c, 1993, 1995), Anon. (1994), and
NRCD (1999); for Buriganga: DWASA (1998).

ronmental Protection Rules of 1997 prescribe different

standards based on best use of specific water resources,
but the rivers or their segments have not been classified
yet for the applicable standards. If we assume the rivers
around Dhaka are to be a source for drinking water
after conventional treatment, it will require BOD to be
3 mg/liter or less, DO 6 mg/liter or more, and total
coliform 5000 MPN/100 ml or less (Syed 1998). In
Nepal, however, no water quality standards have been
prescribed yet, although environmental protection acts
and subsequent rules have come into effect since 1997.
Figure 11. Annual trend in DO of Bagmati, Yamuna and
Comparing these standards to the actual water qualities Buriganga River. Data source for Bagmati: Pradhananga and
in the rivers as presented in Figures 4 –9, readily reveals others (1987), DHM (1996), WECS (1997), and NESS (1998);
that there is no compliance at all except in a few wet for Yamuna: CPCB (1990a– c, 1993, 1995), Anon. (1994), and
months. Overall, average annual BOD is found at least NRCD (1999); for Buriganga: DWASA (1998).
five times higher than standards in the rivers of Dhaka
and Delhi and as much as 15 times higher in the
relationship (in this case negative relationship) existed.
Bagmati if the standards for Nepal were on the same
The details of the result are presented in Table 1. The
scale as in India and Bangladesh. The typical COD to
results show the past trend in the annual increase in
BOD ratio has remained about 5 in Yamuna and 4 in
BOD is 12.4, 1.03, and 0.455 mg/liter year and the
Bagmati River, which indicates substantial amounts of
decrease in DO is 0.36, 0.276, and 0.02 mg/liter year in
inorganic and nonbiodegradable components from in-
the Bagmati, Buriganga, and Yamuna, respectively. The
dustrial sources.
value obtained for BOD increase rate in Bagmati seems
much higher than others for which some tolerance can
Trend in Pollution and Pollution Loads be given due to the data used in analysis, which was
taken from various sources. Overall, however, it is clear
Trends in Pollution Levels that the water quality deterioration rate in the Bagmati
Typical trends in annual average BOD and DO at is rapid and most severe among all rivers.
Bagmati, Yamuna and Buriganga (the data presented
for Bagmati and Buriganga are dry season averages Pollution Load Discharged into Rivers
only) are presented in Figures 10 and 11. Noticeably, Except for a few rough estimates, no detailed study has
BOD has increased with time in all of the rivers and DO been carried out on the assessment of total pollution load
has fallen. In order to estimate the trend in annual into the Bagmati yet. We, therefore, estimated the total
pollution (in terms of concentration) increase, we per- BOD load of the Bagmati at Sundarighat by the wet
formed regression analysis of the available data. As the method, i.e., based on the mean monthly flow and BOD
data for different years were obtained from several concentration data for the years 1993 and 1998, and
sources, correlation coefficients between BOD and DO found it to be 20.5 and 26.6 tons BOD/day, respectively.
were examined in each case in order to verify if a true Two other findings were also noted. Firstly, the rate of
490 S. K. Karn and H. Harada

Table 1. Trend in BOD and DO of Bagmati, Yamuna, and Buriganga rivers after regression analysis
Annual Annual Linear
increase in decrease in Correlation
BOD, mg/ DO, mg/l/ Coefficient of
River Locations l/year year BOD and DO
Bagmati (dry season during 1993–1998) Gaurighat 11.91 ⫺0.48 ⫺0.77
Thapathali 15.4 ⫺0.63 ⫺0.9
Sundarighat 9.9 0.028 0.43
Average 12.4 ⫺0.36
Buriganga (dry season during 1980–1998) Hazaribagh 0.678 ⫺0.142 ⫺0.65
Chandanighat 1.235 ⫺0.238 ⫺0.52
D/S of Pagla STP 1.188 ⫺0.45 ⫺0.78
Average 1.033 ⫺0.276
Yamuna (annual average during 1980–1996) Okhla 0.455 ⫺0.019 ⫺0.42

Table 2. Estimated pollution load of Bagmati River at Sundarighat

Unit 1993 1998 % increase
Average daily BOD load tons BOD/day 20.51 26.63 29.8
Urban populationa millions 0.66 0.84 27.2
Per capita BOD equivalent g/person/day 31.08 31.71
a
Population is projected based on 1991 census data (CBS 1997).

increase of BOD load into the river is almost the same as

the rate of rise in urban population of the valley. In this
five year period, specifically, pollution load has increased
by nearly 30% as compared to 27% rise in the urban
population (Table 2). Per capita BOD discharge is ob-
served to be nearly constant, i.e., about 31 g BOD/per-
son/day. Secondly, the total pollution load in the river
also greatly varies over the months of a year marked by low
levels in dry months and high levels in wet months (Figure
12). The relatively low pollution load in the dry months
may be due to incomplete flushing of pollution loads
because the discharge of the river is less. The high pollu-
tion load in the wet season can be attributed to the
flushing out of all accumulated organic matter, including
the runoff from all over the catchment, i.e., urban, rural,
agricultural, and forest areas. Thus the peak BOD load in
Bagmati seems to be about three times higher than in the
dry season.
In the Yamuna, the total BOD load discharged by
Delhi has been estimated to 193 tons/day as of 1996
(MOEF 1998). Using available data, regression analysis
was performed on 15 years of BOD loading (1982 to
1996) of the Yamuna River at Delhi. This reveals an
annual increase in BOD load of 5.25 tons/day (Figure
13). In terms of per capita BOD discharge, it is again
found to be in the range 18 –22 g BOD/person/day
throughout the entire period, except a small declining
trend is observed after 1995. This also signifies that
pollution load on the Yamuna is increasing at nearly
Figure 12. Monthly variation in BOD load of Bagmati at
Sundarighat, 1998. Data source for flow: CBS (1998), and for
BOD: MOPE (1998) and NESS (1998).
same rate as that of urbanization in Delhi. In the 20-
year interval of 1977–1997, the pollution load on the
Yamuna has increased by 109%, i.e., increased from 96
to 201 tons BOD/day and wastewater generation and
urban population increased by 131% and 122%, respec-
tively (Table 3).
In Dhaka; although past data were not available,
recent studies carried out by the Fourth Dhaka Water
Supply Project present estimated total pollution loads
on all of its peripheral rivers as 230 tonsBOD/day
(DWASA 1998). This brings the per capita BOD dis-
charge to 25 g BOD/person/day.
Industrial Pollution Load and Heavy Metals
In general, industries contribute 14%–17% (16% in
Kathmandu valley, 17% in Dhaka, and 14% in Delhi) of
 Water Pollution in Nepal, India, and Bangladesh
Figure 13. Annual trend in pollution (BOD) load in Yamuna
due to Delhi. Data source: MOEF, Govt. of Delhi state (1998).
the pollution load into the river systems (Table 4).
There are 45 major industries (24 medium and 21
large) in Delhi, which contribute to 120 MLD of waste-
water (i.e., almost 40% of the industrial component)
while other 93,000 small-scale industries discharges to
200 MLD into the Yamuna. Three coal-based thermal
power plants are among the big polluters, as they pro-
duces 5600 tons of fly ash to be treated before disposal.
Walia and Mehra (1998) have reported on the increase
of heavy metals—typically chromium (from 17 to 34
␮g/liter) and lead (from 213 to 254 ␮g/liter)—in the
Yamuna due to the effluents from fly ash treatment
ponds of the Indraprastha power plant. Some other
major polluters in Delhi are the fertilizer, food process-
ing, textiles, and insecticide industries among large and
medium size industries and about 8000 –10,000 electro-
plating industries on a small scale.
In the Kathmandu valley, the industrial pollution
load was estimated at 3.15 tons BOD/day in 1994; of
the sector distribution is: 31% from carpet, 25% from
vegetable oil, 15% from dairy, 15% from brewery and
distilleries, 4% from textile, and 10% from others
(Devkota and Neupane 1994). Recently, the number of
carpet industries has fallen sharply due to shrinking
international markets. Nearly 1214 industries, of a total
2174 in the valley, have been identified as water pollut-
ing in Kathmandu valley and some 60 of them are
major polluters (Devkota and Neupane 1994, IUCN
1991). The concentrations of heavy metals such as chro-
mium, lead, cadmium, and nickel at two sites in the
Bagmati (Thapathali and Sundarighat) in 1998 were
observed to be 0.01, 0.01– 0.02, 0.001– 0.002, and 0.01
mg/liter, respectively (NESS 1998). Thus, overall,
heavy metals in the Bagmati are still within tolerable
limits.
In Bangladesh Department of Environment, had
identified 450 major water polluting industries in
Dhaka by 1997, including 183 tanneries; 129 textiles; 38
engineering; 32 pharmaceuticals; and 32 chemicals
(Gain 1998). Among several small to large industrial
491
clusters in Dhaka, Hazaribagh (mainly tanneries) and
Tejgaon (textiles and chemicals) are among major pol-
lution load contributors and also are responsible for
discharging huge amounts of heavy metals. In 1998, the
total discharges of chromium, lead, and zinc to the
peripheral rivers of Dhaka were estimated to be 794,
119, and 2427 kg/day, respectively (DWASA 1998).
More than 90% of all chromium is considered to be
discharged only from Hazaribagh, which houses more
than 160 tanneries. Thus, despite reasonably high river
flows in Dhaka, concentrations of heavy metals, specif-
ically chromium and lead, have reached the alarmingly
critical level of 0.05 mg/liter (Bangladesh standard)
(Figure 14).
Causes of Pollution and Some Critical Issues
Two major causes can be viewed as primarily respon-
sible for this state of water pollution in these countries.
The first is the unrestricted discharge of raw or partially
treated wastewater (both of domestic or industrial ori-
gin), including the pollution-rich urban runoff. This
can be attributed to inadequate urban sanitary infra-
structure, i.e., sewerage, proper on-site sanitation mea-
sures, wastewater treatment facilities, and effective solid
waste management. The second is the lack of adequate
regulatory pollution control measures and their strict
enforcement in real practice. The subsequent discus-
sions will be mainly concentrated on these two aspects.
Status of Sewerage and Wastewater Treatment
Facilities
All three cities possess mixed type urban sewerage
and drainage systems, consisting of zones with both
sewerage and stormwater drainage facilities (separate
or combined), regions served by stormwater drains
only, and regions without any sewer or designed storm-
water drains. Some houses also have on-site sanitation
with septic tanks or privies, but clear and detailed sta-
tistics are lacking on each type of sanitation method
and coverage in all these countries; thus often such
data are described only vaguely or in terms of rough
estimations only. Incompleteness in such statistics is
mainly attributed to the difficulty in taking account
of floating or unregistered populations, unautho-
rized sewer connections, illegal pollution discharges,
poor record keeping, etc. Due to various approaches
in estimation, results from various sources and stud-
ies can be contradictory. Based on available informa-
tion, an overview on present sanitation status and
practices is presented in Table 5. As can be easily
identified, two sources quote different values for sew-
erage coverage in Delhi (40% or 75%). Based upon
492 S. K. Karn and H. Harada

Table 3. Change in pollution scenario of Yamuna at Delhi over two decades

1977 1997 % increase
Wastewater generation (MLD) 960 2220 131
Sewage Treatment Plants Capacity (MLD) 450 1270 182
BOD load into Yamuna River (tons/day)a 96.1 201.2 109
Population of Delhi (millions) 4.844 10.743 122
Per capita equivalent in BOD load, g BOD/person/day 19.83 18.73 ⫺5.5
Ratio of wastewater treated, (%) 47 57 10
Calculated overall BOD Concentration in wastewater (mg/liter) 188 211 12
a
Projection is based on linear regression analysis.

Table 4. Share of industrial pollution load into the rivers

Total Industrial
City Parameter Unit load sector %
a
Kathmandu(a) BOD tons/day 19.5 3.15 16.1
Wastewater MLD 87 5.75 6.6
Dhaka(b) BOD tons/day 230 40 17.4
Delhi(c) Wastewater MLD 2220 320 14.4
a
(a) Devkota (1994); (b) DWASA (1998); (c) MOEF, Govt. of Delhi, India (1998).

mandu, 1.1 MLD for Lalitpur, and about 1 MLD for

Figure 14. Heavy metals in the rivers of Dhaka, 1998. Data
source: DWASA (1998).
the existing high pollution load and scenario, we
consider that 75% population coverage is a highly
optimistic estimation. In the case of Dhaka and Kath-
mandu valley, it is found that only 44% and 25% of
houses are connected to sewerage, respectively. In
terms of solid waste generation and collection, it is
observed that nearly 30% in Kathmandu valley and
45% in Dhaka remains uncollected, i.e., somehow
become a part of urban runoff.
Regarding wastewater treatment, three sewage treat-
ment plants (STPs) with a total design capacity of about
19 MLD (nearly 20% of present demand) have been
constructed in Kathmandu valley (17 MLD for Kath-
Bhaktapur cities), but the plants at Kathmandu and
Lalitpur have remained shut down for many years
(NWSC 1993). Some reports mention that the treat-
ment plant in Kathmandu was built but never came into
operation due lack of proper conveyance systems; pres-
ently almost all the sewage of the valley is being directly
discharged into the Bagmati or its tributaries. In Dhaka,
there is a sewage treatment plant at Pagla, but its ca-
pacity is only 96 MLD, less than 12% of the present
estimated demand (Table 6). In Delhi, however, exist-
ing six STPs with a total installed capacity of 1270 MLD
seem capable of treating some 57% of total wastewater
generated in Delhi.
All structures, including commercial and indus-
trial complexes, that are not connected to the sewer
or have no on-site sanitation discharge their waste-
water into the stormwater drains (legally or illegally)
or natural ditches, turning them into open sewers
and creating prone to public health hazards. The
typical water quality of such drains and their pollu-
tion load are presented in Table 7. As is observed,
Najafgarh drain is carrying almost 50% of total pol-
lution load of Delhi. The drain coming from the
Hazaribagh tannery area with outfall into the Burig-
anga River (via sluice gate no. 7) in Dhaka contains
concentrations of chromium and lead of up to 19.4
and 0.151 mg/liter, respectively, which is much
higher than the allowable Bangladesh standard of
0.05 mg/liter for both elements. Another drain, Dho-
lai khal, remains the major polluter of the Buriganga
 Water Pollution in Nepal, India, and Bangladesh 493

Table 5. Sewerage and sanitary facilities in Kathmandu, Delhi, and Dhaka

Sewerage service (%) Stormwater On-site Solid waste management
drain only sanitation
Area Population (% (% Generation Collection
covered Householdsa covered population) population) (tons/day) (tons/day)
Kathmandu 25 19a–25b 25b 25b 300c 165–210c
Delhi 40 75d 5000e
Dhaka 38f 44 35f 25 3370g 1400–1800g
a
WRI 1999 (as of ‘93).
b
a, NWSC (1998); b, WECS (1997); c, UNCHS (1998); d, CPCB (1997a) (as of 94); e, MOEF, (1998); f, Planning Commission (1998); g, Ahmad
(1998).

Table 6. Wastewater generation and treatment in Kathmandu Valley, Delhi and Dhaka
Existing Sewage Treatment Plants
Wastewater
Wastewater generation Total capacity treatment
MLD N Type (MLD) Present condition (%)
a
Kathmandu 104 3 Oxidation 19 Non-functional 0
Pond
Delhi 2220b 6 ASP and 1270 Working 57
others
Dhaka 870a 1 Oxidation 96 Working at low efficiency 11
pond
a
Assuming 80% of total water consumption.
b
MOEF, Government of Delhi, India (1998).

Table 7. Water quality and pollution load on selected storm water drains
BOD BOD load Cr Pb
Name of drains (mg/liter) (tons/day) (mg/liter) (mg/liter)
Delhi(a)a Najafgarh 367 81
Civil Mill 304 14
Sen Nursing home 330 14
Dhaka(b) Dholai Khal (discharge into Buriganga) 323 30 0.092 0.14
Norai Khal (discharge into Balu River) 150 75 0.025 0.066
Sluice no. 7 (discharge into Turag River) 466 24 19.4 0.151
Kathmandu(c) Tukucha (discharge into Bagmati River) 312
Average of all sewer outfalls 280
a
Source: a, CSE, 97 (as of CPCB) and WWF-India (1995); (b) DWASA (1998); c, DHM (1996) and WECS (1997).

River, carrying most of the pollution load of the
Dhaka core region. Similarly, Tukucha drain in Kath-
mandu is the biggest pollution carrier from around
the inner city zone, and it discharging to the Bag-
mati.
Pollution Control Measures and Their Enforcement
Water pollution control policy and management in
all these countries, so far, has been mainly based on
command and control approaches, i.e., through laws,
regulations, and fixed standards. Table 8 presents the
details on relevant laws, standards, and agencies. In
general, some major pollution control tools as exer-
cised under the respective environmental protection
acts (EPAs) of these countries are viewed as: enforce-
ment of environmental quality standards including
ambient water quality standards, general effluent and
industry-based effluent standards; provision of environ-
mental impact assessment (EIA) for development
projects and industries; and siting or environmental
certification systems for new industries. Two issues still
need attention: the inadequacy of present legal mea-
sures for total pollution control and the failure to ef-
fectively implement existing regulations.
Inadequate regulatory measures. This state of affairs is
more pronounced in the case of Nepal as it does not yet
494 S. K. Karn and H. Harada

Table 8. Water pollution control laws and institutions in Nepal, India, and Bangladesha
Nepal India Bangladesh
Primary law EPA 1995 and EPR 1997 Water (pollution control and EPA 1995 and EPR
prevention) Act, 1974 1997
EPA 1986 and EPR 1986
Standards on Industrial effluent standards Inland surface water standard Inland surface water
water standards
General effluent (industry) Sewage discharge
standards standards
Industry-specific effluent General effluent
standards (industry)
standards
Industry-specific
effluent standards
Law executing and Ministry of Industry State pollution control board Department of
concerned (SPCB) or pollution Environment
Institutions control committee (PCC)
of states
Ministry of Population and Central pollution control
Environment board (CPCB)
Ministry of Environment and
Forest (MOEF)
a
EPA: Environmental Protection Act; EPR: Environmental Protection Rules.

have any ambient water quality standards (objectives)
or detailed sets of effluent standards. The only standard
existing in Nepal is the tolerance limits for industrial
effluents discharged into inland surface waters (MOI,
1990), but this does not include the effluents dis-
charged onto land or into public sewers. In fact waste-
water from all industries, even from those in industrial
estates, is being discharged into the public sewers or
nearby land. Thus, it appears there is virtually, no con-
trol over water polluters in Nepal. In India, the major
setback is observed in pollution control of municipal
sewage (domestic and commercial sources). Effluent
standards, as prescribed in EPR of 1986, deal exclu-
sively with effluents from industries, processes, or op-
erations (CPCB 1992). However, more than 85% of
wastewater discharged to the Yamuna is municipal sew-
age (domestic or commercial origin); thus this part
needs more emphasis, and existing EPA or EPR of 1986
seems silent in this aspect. Without enforceable man-
dates or standards, either on the part of homeowners or
sewage management authorities, improvement may not
be achieved soon. In Dhaka, however, EPR of 1997
prescribes some sewage discharge standards (Schedule
9, EPR, 1997), but does not clearly mention who (indi-
vidual homeowner or public sewage treatment plant
operating authority) should follow this. If that is for
sewage treatment plant authority then again the situa-
tion will be like in India as large portion of urban
settlement doesn’t have access to sewerage system.
Noncompliance with standards. This has been particu-
larly dealt in light of industrial pollution control that
could have been minimized, to far extent, if the imple-
mentation of existing standards were effective and
strict. Despite the regulatory measures and standards
that are in effect, CPCB reports that 23 of 45 major
industries (medium to large) in Delhi still do not pos-
sess effluent treatment plants that can comply with the
prescribed effluent standards (CPCB 1997b). In the
case of small-scale industries, only 10,000 (11%) of
about 93,000 industries are operating in the 28 ap-
proved industrial sites of Delhi (Anon. 1994). Most of
these industries are discharging to the Najafgarh drain-
age basin or elsewhere without any treatment. In
Dhaka, except for Shyampur, most of the large indus-
trial zones (clusters) are not part of the public sewerage
network. Hazaribagh Tanneries discharge their waste to
the wetlands nearby and Tejgaon industrial estate to
Beganbari khal. The very high BOD and heavy metals
in all drainages of Dhaka, especially nearby the indus-
trial zones, such as sluice 7, which receives effluents
from Hazaribagh (Table 7), reflects possible violation
of standards. As per DOE, the total number of water
polluting industries in Bangladesh increased from 903
in 1986 to 1176 in 1997 and 472 of them were in Dhaka
(Gain 1998), but as the environmental standards have
been enforced since only 1997 in Bangladesh, the real
impact is yet to be observed.
Conclusion
The Bagmati River in Kathmandu valley, the
Yamuna at Delhi, and surface water resources around
 Water Pollution in Nepal, India, and Bangladesh
Dhaka are highly polluted and unfit for the designated
water uses. High organic and pathogenic levels in all
urban surface waters have resulted from huge discharge
of municipal wastewater (sewage and industrial waste-
water) and urban drainage into the rivers. Average
annual BOD and total coliform in the rivers of Dhaka,
the Bagmati in Kathmandu, and the Yamuna down-
stream of Delhi are in the range of 20 –25 mg/liter and
104–105 MPN/100 ml, respectively. Seasonal variation
in water quality of the Bagmati and Yamuna reveals a
more critical situation during the dry season (Decem-
ber to May). In those months, BOD rises to 90 and 45
mg/liter in the Bagmati and Yamuna, respectively, and
DO drops to almost zero. Average per capita pollution
discharge to the rivers is estimated to 31, 20, and 25 g
BOD/person/day in the Bagmati, Yamuna, and Dhaka
rivers, respectively. In the Buriganga and Bagmati riv-
ers, DO has decreased annually at a rate of nearly 0.3
mg/liter/yr. In all these cities, municipal sewage con-
tributes nearly 85% of all pollution to the rivers. To
date, Nepal still lacks ambient water quality standards
or other comprehensive effluent standards. However,
in India and Bangladesh, primarily in effective imple-
mentation of established standards is lacking. As en-
forceable regulatory or other measures have not yet
been sufficiently developed, municipal sewage is a con-
tinuing problem in reducing the total pollution load of
the rivers.
Acknowledgments
The authors wish to thank and acknowledge the coop-
eration received from many individuals and organiza-
tions during country visits and data collection. The
financial assistance for this study was supported by the
Japan Society of the Promotion of Sciences (JSPS) un-
der grant-in-aid for scientific research B (grant no.
12013203, principal investigator, Hideki Harada).
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