Environ Monit Assess (2010) 165:103–112
DOI 10.1007/s10661-009-0930-9
Water quality assessment of river Hindon at Ghaziabad,
India: impact of industrial and urban wastewater
Surindra Suthar · Jitender Sharma ·
Mayuri Chabukdhara · Arvind K. Nema
Received: 20 January 2009 / Accepted: 18 April 2009 / Published online: 6 May 2009
© Springer Science + Business Media B.V. 2009
Abstract River Hindon is a major source of water
to the highly populated and predominantly rural
population of western Uttar Pradesh, India. The
main goal of the present study was to assess
the impact of urban and industrial activities on the
water quality of river Hindon at the Ghaziabad.
For this, river water samples were collected from
six different sites all along the route of Hindon
main streamline and its branch and were analyzed
for pH, turbidity, electrical conductivity (EC), to-
tal dissolved solids (TDS), total alkalinity (TA),
total hardness (TH) and calcium hardness (Ca-H),
chemical oxygen (COD) demand, biochemical
oxygen demand (BOD), dissolved oxygen (D.O.),
sulphate (as SO4 2− ), nitrate (as NO3 − ) and
chloride (Cl− ) levels. There were drastic vari-
ations for EC (0.83–5.04 ms), turbidity (28.7–
109.3 NTU), TDS (222.2–2426.3 mg l−1 ), SO4
(36.4–162.4 mg l−1 ), NO3 (106–245 mg l−1 ), TA
(347.0–596.3 mg l−1 ), TH (235.1–459.9 mg l−1 ),
Ca–H (64.5–402.2 mg l−1 ), BOD (27–51 mg l−1 )
S. Suthar (B) · J. Sharma ·
M. Chabukdhara · A. K. Nema
Department of Civil Engineering,
Indian Institute of Technology Delhi,
Hauz Khas, New Delhi 110 016, India
e-mail: suthariitd@gmail.com
and COD (85.0–337.4 mg l−1 ) levels at different
sites. Water pollution indicating parameters were
manifold higher than the prescribed limit by the
National Pollution Control Agency, i.e. CPCB.
This is the first study on itself and the interrela-
tionship of human activities and river water qual-
ity makes the study significant and interesting to
assess the pollution load discharges in catchments
of Hindon at Ghaziabad. Overall, the water qual-
ity of Hindon was relatively poor with respect to
its use for domestic purposes.
Keywords River pollution · BOD · COD ·
Water quality · Hindon · Industrialisation ·
Urban runoff · Self-purification system ·
Human impact
Introduction
Rapid population growths, land development
along river basin, urbanisation and industrialisa-
tion have subjected the rivers to increase stress,
giving rise to water pollution and environmental
deterioration (Sumok 2001). The surface water
pollution issue has been enlisted as one of the
most serious problems in developing countries.
Most of the rivers in the urban areas of the de-
veloping world are the end point of effluents dis-
charged from the industries (Phiri et al. 2005). In
India, urban runoff and sewerage disposal in river
104 Environ Monit Assess (2010) 165:103–112

Table 1 Industrial scenario of Ghaziabad (UPPCB 2007)

catchments areas is the major problem of river
water quality maintenance. The wastewater from Name of industry No. of units
urban runoff and industrial discharges contributes Sugar industry 3
Distillery and beverage 5
to water resources degradations, reduces agricul-
Tannery 3
ture production and affects public health. Accord- Pulp and paper 8
ing to Kaushik et al. (2009), in India, where most Dyes 4
of the developmental activities are still dependent Pesticides and formulation 10
upon rivers for cleaning as well as disposal pur- Drug and pharmaceutical 11
poses, it becomes very important to systemically Textile 115
study the status of pollution of the rivers in rela- Induction/foundry 79
Galvanising/electroplating 67
tion to various anthropogenic activities, since river
Chemicals 12
water has been used as drinking water and irri-
Synthetic rubber and fibres and glass 4
gation water for agriculture and for fish culture Asbestos products 5
throughout the history of mankind. Also, they are Lead reprocessing 27
important in soil fertility maintenance, transporta- Frozen meat processing 11
tion, forest resources development and wildlife Dairy 5
conservations. Therefore, comprehensive river
water quality monitoring program is becoming a
necessity in order to safeguard public health and
to protect the valuable and vulnerable freshwater tubes, tapestries, glassware, pottery, vegetable oil,
resources (Kannel et al. 2007). paint and varnish, heavy chains, automobile pis-
River Hindon originates in the lower Himalayas tons and rings, steel pharmaceuticals, liquor, etc.
in Saharanpur district (UP, Uttar Pradesh) and These industries extract large volumes of water
flows 260 km through six districts including from the river for their manufacturing processes
Muzaffarnagar, Meerut, Baghpat, Ghaziabad and and also discharge their industrial effluents, often
Gautambudh Nagar until its confluence with the with nominal or no treatment, directly to the river.
Yamuna. It is a major source of water to the highly On the other hand, rapid urbanisation in the
populated and predominantly rural population of territory of Ghaziabad has also placed pressure
western Uttar Pradesh. It drains a catchments on the river water quality in this region. Increase
area of about 5,000 km of farmland whilst also in the urban population of Ghaziabad can be
flowing through a number of substantial sized attributed to the influx of people to the city for
towns and villages. In highly populated and pre- earning their bread and butter and secondly to the
dominantly rural catchments, the Hindon river is residential problem of the Delhi metropolis. In
heavily utilised as a water resource for domestic, this way, rapid industrialisation and urbanisation
agricultural and industrial uses. Some earlier stud- has created issues of environmental pollutions
ies had reported the metal pollution in river in this region. Although several studies on the
Hindon at Muzaffarnagar, Meerut, Saharnpur and impact of industrialisation and urbanisation on
Ballabhgarh (Ajmal et al. 1987; Jain et al. 2005; the river water quality in Haryana, UP, Delhi,
Sharma et al. 2009) areas of UP, India. After Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal have been car-
reviewing the current literature, it is clear that no ried out (De et al. 1980; Mukherjee et al. 1993;
comprehensive report is available on the water Singh et al. 2005; Jain et al. 2005; Khadse et al.
quality of river Hindon at Ghaziabad. Ghaziabad 2008; Kaushik et al. 2009; Lohani et al. 2008;
is a fastest growing industrial city in UP and more Purkait et al. 2009), little attention was paid on
than 300 industrial units (Table 1) are located the river water quality in the industrialised city of
in its territory; including 60 industrial manufac- Ghaziabad.
turing units along the Hindon and its two main In this study, we evaluated the water quality of
tributaries, the Kali (West) and Krishni rivers. river Hindon at different localities in Ghaziabad.
The major industrial products from Ghaziabad Samples were collected in the main streamline of
are diesel engines, electroplating, bicycles, picture river Hindon and its branch (Hindon branch). The
Environ Monit Assess (2010) 165:103–112
main goal of this study was to assess the impact of
urban and industrial activities on the river water
quality of the study area.
Materials and methods
Study area
Samples of Hindon water were collected from six
different sites of Ghaziabad. Ghaziabad is situ-
ated in the middle of Ganga-Yamuna doab about
1.5 km east of the Hindon river. Geographically,
it is located at latitude 28◦ 40 N and longitude
77◦ 25 E. The north part of Ghaziabad is bounded
by the Meerut district, whereas on the southern
part are Gautambudh Nagar and Bulandshahar.
The climate of this region is tropical to temperate
with extreme temperature conditions in summer
(up to 43◦ C) and winter (up to 3◦ C). The mean
annual rainfall in this region is 702 mm varying
spatially in different subregions of the district. The
river is characterised by sluggish flow throughout
Fig. 1 Location map of the sampling sites in Ghaziabad area
105
year, except during monsoon when rainfall causes
a manifold increase in the runoff.
The brief description of sampling station (Fig. 1)
is as follows:
1. S-1 (Mohannagar): Sample was collected from
Mohannagar where waste dumping, sewerage
openings, clothes washing, etc. activities were
observed in river catchments area.
2. S-2 (Railway Bridge): It is a downstream
site of river Hindon and a short stream, i.e.
Hindon branch originates at this site.
3. S-3 (Hapur bypass): It is downstream site of
Hindon with sever anthropogenic activities,
night soil elimination, garbage dumping, etc.
4. S-4: It is downstream site and located near
Haibatpur.
5. S-5 (Hindon branch): Sample was taken
from Hindon branch at a site near Ghazipur
landfill. Hindon branch passes through the
urban locality of eastern Delhi and ultimately
opens into river Yamuna.
106 Environ Monit Assess (2010) 165:103–112

6. S-6: It is an upstream sampling site situated method as described by APHA (1998). Detail
near Ataur village. methodologies are described in Table 2.

Water sampling and preservation

Reagents and standards
Sampling was done in November 2008 from six
Analytical grade chemicals were used throughout
sites (Fig. 1), all along the route of Hindon
the study without any further purification. To pre-
in Ghaziabad. Samples were collected in sterile
pare all the reagents and calibration standards,
capped containers by following the method as
double glass distilled water was used. Deionised
described by APHA (1998). To avoid contami-
water was used throughout the study. The glass-
nations, disposable gloves washed with 1 N HCl
ware were washed with dilute nitric acid (1.15)
were worn during water sampling. Sampling bot-
followed by several portions to distilled water
tles were kept in large, airtight plastic ice-cold
(APHA-AWWA-WPCF 1994). All the experi-
containers at 4◦ C and were transported to labo-
ments were carried out in duplicate. The results
ratory within 6 h of their collection for further
were reproducible within ±3% error limit.
processing.

Analysis Statistical analysis

Water samples were analysed for level of pH,
turbidity, electrical conductivity (EC), total dis-
solved solids (TDS), total alkalinity (TA), total
hardness (TH), calcium hardness, chemical oxy-
gen (COD) demand, biochemical oxygen demand
(BOD), dissolved oxygen (DO), sulphate (SO4 ),
nitrate (NO3 ) and chloride (Cl− ) by following the
One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used
to analyse the differences between sampling sites
for different parameters. Tukey’s t test was also
performed to identify the homogeneous type of
the data sets. Pearson correlation matrix was also
calculated for the different physicochemical para-
meters of river water.

Table 2 Water quality parameters, units and analytical methods used for Hindon river
Parameters Abbreviation Units Analytical methods Instruments
pH pH – Instrumental pH meter (model pH -538)
WTW (Germany)
Electrical conductivity EC mS Instrumental Systronic conductivity meter
(model 306)
Turbidity TBR NTU Instrumental ESICO turbidity meter
(model 335 E)
Total dissolved solids TDS mg l−1 Filtration and gravimetric Temperature controlled oven
Total hardness TH mg l−1 Titrimetric Titration assembly
Total alkalinity TH mg l−1 Titrimetric Titration assembly
Ca-hardness Ca-H mg l−1 Titrimetric Titration assembly
Chloride Cl− mg l−1 Titrimetric Titration assembly
Sulphate SO4 2− mg l−1 Instrumental (using BaCl2 ) Systronic conductivity meter
(model 306)
Nitrate NO3 − mg l−1 Instrumental Thermo nitrate analyser
Biochemical oxygen BOD mg l−1 5-day incubation, 20◦ C BOD incubator and titration
demand assembly
Chemical oxygen COD mg l−1 Potassium dichromate oxidation Refluxing assemble
demand (close reflux, titrimetric)
Dissolved oxygen DO mg l−1 Titrimetric Titration assembly
Environ Monit Assess (2010) 165:103–112 107

Results and discussion in turbidity of river Hindon water was observed

Physicochemical properties of Hindon water
Urban river is an important component of urban
ecosystem and development. The rapid develop-
ment of urban economy, human settlements and
industrial development has created severe pollu-
tion loads in inland surface water bodies in urban
localities. However, chemical quality assessment
of such surface bodies may widely reflect the pol-
lution load and anthropogenic pressure on surface
water systems. The analysis results of study sites
are given in Tables 3 and 4. pH is the indicator
of acidic and alkaline condition of water status.
BIS (1986) has suggested 6.5–8.5 range of pH
for water for any purposes in that respect; the
ranges indicate moderately alkaline water of river
Hindon. Mean pH of Hindon varied from 7.40
to 7.89 at different sampling sites. At S-4, S-5
and S-6, pH was almost equal, not showing sta-
tistically significant difference (ANOVA/Tukey’s
t test; P = 0.082). Higher pH at some sites could
be due to bicarbonates and carbonate of calcium
and magnesium in water. The main source of such
chemicals should be urban runoff or industrial
wastewater. A spatial and significant variation
for different sampling sites (ANOVA, P < 0.001).
Turbidity varied from 28.7 to 109.3 NTU. It was
higher possibly due to the mixing of domestic
sewerage water and industrial effluents in river
Hindon. The decreasing turbidity at downstream
sites was due to the flow turbulences and settling
factors. The observed trend of turbidity at down-
stream sites, e.g. S-2, S-4 and S-5, further sup-
ports the above hypothesis. Khadse et al. (2008)
reported similar patterns of spatial variations in
turbidity whilst studying the water quality of river
Kanhan. They attributed the lowering turbidity
in subsequent downstream sites to oxidation by
turbulences.
Conductivity of Hindon river water was sig-
nificantly different among sampling sites, vary-
ing from 0.83 to 5.04 mS (ANOVA, P < 0.001),
although the difference was of least significance
among S-2, S-4 and S-6 sites (ANOVA/Tukey’s
t test; P > 0.05). High conductivity at S-1, S-3 and
S-5 sites indicates the mixing of sewerage in river
water. Lower conductivity in downstream water
may be due to the dilution of urban and industrial
runoffs. TDS further indicates the salinity behav-
ior of river water. Mean TDS content of river
water was in the range of 222.2–2426.3 mg l−1

Table 3 Physicochemical characteristics of the Hindon river in Ghaziabad region

Sampling site pH Turbidity (NTU) EC (mS) TDS (mg l−1 ) TA (mg l−1 ) TH (mg l−1 )
S-1 Range 7.4–7.5 107–112 5.01–5.12 2410–2456 592–601 456–465
Mean 7.40 a 109.3 d 5.04 d 2426.3 f 596.3 f 459.9 a
SD 0.04 2.52 0.066 25.73 4.50 4.71
S-2 Range 7.8–7.9 75–79 0.90–0.96 332–336 504–512 256–260
Mean 7.89 c 77.0 c 0.96 a 334.0 b 508.7 e 257.5 b
SD 0.10 2.0 0.057 2.0 4.16 2.26
S-3 Range 7.7–7.8 103–115 2.15–2.45 978–996 460–475 280–285
Mean 7.75 b 108.0 d 2.25 c 984.7 e 466.3 d 281.8 c
SD 0.02 6.24 0.17 9.87 7.76 2.83
S-4 Range 7.8–7.9 34–42 0.88–0.96 220–225 425–436 229–240
Mean 7.83c 38.3 a 0.91 a 222.23 a 430.0 c 235.1 a
SD 0.010 4.04 0.05 2.96 5.56 5.35
S-5 Range 7.8–7.9 50–56 1.23–1.56 509–516 380–396 250–256
Mean 7.89 c 53.3 b 1.34 b 511.3 c 386.7 b 253.7 b
SD 0.010 3.05 0.19 4.04 8.32 3.03
S-6 Range 7.8–7.9 27–30 0.82–0.85 893–905 340–356 247–253
Mean 7.88 c 28.7 a 0.83 a 897.3 d 347.0 a 249.7 b
SD 0.03 1.53 0.015 6.65 8.18 3.61
Mean values followed by different letters are statistically different (ANOVA; Tukey’s t test, P < 0.05)
108 Environ Monit Assess (2010) 165:103–112

Table 4 Physicochemical characteristics of the Hindon river in Ghaziabad region

Sampling Ca Cl− SO4 2− NO3 − BOD COD DO
site (mg l−1 ) (mg l−1 ) (mg l−1 ) (mg l−1 ) (mg l−1 ) (mg l−1 ) (mg l−1 )
S-1 Range 400–404 1302–1326 161–165 240–245 49–54 335–340 3.0–3.2
Mean 402.2 c 1312.1 e 162.4 d 245.0 e 51.0 d 337.4 e 3.10 a
SD 1.97 12.67 2.47 5.0 2.65 2.50 0.10
S-2 Range 76–83 220–223 36–37 160–165 35–37 174–180 3.4–3.9
Mean 79.5 b 221.1 b 36.5 ab 162.3 c 36.0 b 176.3 c 3.62 ab
SD 3.31 1.71 0.12 2.52 1.0 3.41 0.26
S-3 Range 64–66 486–496 103–110 140–149 30–33 122–126 3.1–3.6
Mean 64.5 a 491.2 d 106.4 c 144.7 31.7 ab 124.3 b 3.41 c
SD 1.21 5.40 3.60 4.05 a 1.52 1.72 0.26
S-4 Range 67–68 201–205 40–45 96–112 41–45 210–216 3.4–3.6
Mean 67.6 a 203.2 a 42.7 b 106.0 42.7 ab 212.7 d 3.49 b
SD 0.37 1.56 2.52 8.71 a 2.08 2.77 010
S-5 Range 76–77 205–211 36–37 182–189 32–35 82.6–86.9 4.0–4.1
Mean 76.7 b 207.5 ab 36.4 187.0 33.7 d 85.0 4.03 a
SD 0.56 2.95 0.62 a 4.35 b 1.52 2.18 a 0.06
S-6 Range 64–65 325–335 34–36 145–152 25–29 85–86 3.2–3.5
Mean 64.5 a 332.1 c 38.1 a 149.0 a 27.0 ab 85.6 a 3.49 a
SD 0.30 5.61 0.89 3.61 2.0 0.70 0.33
Mean value followed by different letters is statistically different (ANOVA; Tukey’s t test, P < 0.05)

(Table 3). The maximum and minimum TDS
range was observed at S-1 and S-4 sampling sites,
further indicating the mixing of pollutants in river
Hindon. Hindon showed TDS in the order S-1 >
S-2 > S-3 > S-6 > S-5 > S-4. At S-1 sampling
site, TDS was 2.5 to 11 times higher than other
sampling sites. It was due to mixing of sewerage,
clothes washing and garbage dumping, although
these are some common activities at the riverbank
in this area. Higher TDS in water system increases
the chemical and biological oxygen demand and
ultimately depletes the dissolved oxygen level
in water. TDS in water originates from natural
sources, sewage, urban runoff, industrial waste-
water and chemicals used in the water treatment
process.
TA varied drastically among different sampling
sites in river Hindon (ANOVA, P < 0.001). Mean
TA was in the range 347.0–596.3 mg l−1 . A re-
duction in TA was observed in downstream river
water. Khadse et al. (2008) reported a high range
(374–486 mg l−1 ) of TA in Nag river which carries
sewage water. High TA in Hindon indicates the
sewerage mixing in river water at Ghaziabad. TH
is a very important property of water from its
domestic application point of view. Hard water
causes problem in boilers in industries. TH of
Hindon water varies from 235.1 to 459.9 mg l−1 .
There was great variation in TH contents among
different sampling sites and a trend of higher TH
was at major polluted sites in river Hindon at
Ghaziabad. The greater TH at S-1 was due to
mixing of domestic effluents in river water. Also,
anthropogenic activities might be responsible for
higher TH at this site. Singh et al. (2005) claimed
that in urban areas, the careless disposal of in-
dustrial effluents and other wastes may contribute
greatly to the poor quality of the water. Similarly,
Khadse et al. (2008) reported a higher range (142–
204 mg l−1 ) of TH in river Kanhan and Pench due
to mixing of urban runoff. The data clearly sup-
port the hypothesis that urban runoff and indus-
trial wastewater has been contributing effectively
to deteriorate river water quality at Ghaziabad.
Calcium hardness (mean) in river water varied
from 64.5 to 402.2 mg l−1 at different sampling
sites. The higher calcium content may be due to
mixing of urban runoff and industrial wastewater.
Also, there was low calcium content in river water
in downstream sampling sites which might be due
to the dilution of polluted water in subsequent
sampling sites. Chloride concentration in water is
Environ Monit Assess (2010) 165:103–112
not harmful. The detection of higher concentra-
tion of chloride in freshwater suggests the pres-
ence of pollutants. Chloride content in Hindon
water was in the range of 203.2–1312.1 mg l−1 .
Nevertheless, chloride concentration at different
sampling site did not exhibit a clear trend with re-
spect to point or non-point pollution sites. Greater
chloride content at S-1 suggested the mixing of
urban wastewater or industrial effluents in river
water. Overall, chloride concentration was within
the acceptable limit as determined by CPCB
(1995) for inland surface water, except in category
‘A’ uses (Table 5). According to Khadse et al.
(2008), higher chloride in river water depends
upon meeting of local streams, town/city flow and
runoff water mixing with river.
Sulphate and nitrate are important parameters
of river water showing the pollution status and
anthropogenic load in river water. In Hindon,
SO4 2− and NO3 − ranged between 36.4–162.4 and
106.0–245.0 mg l−1 , respectively, at different sam-
pling sites in Ghaziabad. NO3 − was maximum
at the site where urban runoff mixing was noted.
It was interesting that lower NO3 − was ob-
served in downstream non-point pollution sites at
Ghaziabad. Nitrate in Hindon exceeds Indian
inland surface water standards (CPCB 1995).
Higher nitrate contents in Hindon water sug-
gested the mixing of sewerage water in river sys-
tem. The high NO3 − ranges at S-1 and S-5 sites
further suggested that urban runoff may deterio-
Table 5 Classification of inland surface waters (CPCB
1995)
Characteristics A B C D
DO (mg l−1 ) min. 6 5 4 –
BOD (mg l−1 ) max. 2 3 3 –
TDS (mg l−1 ) max. 500 – 1,500
pH level 6.5–8.5 6.5–8.5 6.5–8.5
Conductivity – – – 2,250
SO4 2− (mg l−1 ) max. 400 – 400
NO3 − (mg l−1 ) max. 20 – 50
Cl− (mg l−1 ) max. 250 – 600
A—Drinking water source without conventional treatment
but after disinfection
B—Outdoor bathing (organised)
C—Drinking water source with conventional treatment
followed by disinfection
D—Irrigation, industrial, cooling, controlled waste
disposal
109
rate the quality of river water in urban areas. Sim-
ilarly, higher sulphate concentration in Hindon
may be due to mixing of urban runoff and sew-
erage water, although ranges were within the
permissible limit of Indian inland surface water
standards (Table 4).
BOD value indicates organic pollution in the
aquatic systems, which adversely affect the river
water quality and biodiversity. In Hindon, BOD
ranged from 27 to 51 mg l−1 at different locali-
ties. At S-1 and S-4 sites, BOD was higher than
other sites, possibly due to mixing of wastewater
from nalas (outfalls or drainage systems for the
discharge of effluents) from city and industries.
BOD in Hindon was in the order S-1 > S-2 >
S-5 > S-3 > S-4 > S-6. A trend of decreasing
BOD in downstream sites was observed, which
further indicates the self-purification capacity of
this river. Comparatively, lower BOD at upstream
(S-6) sampling point than other (downstream)
sites clearly suggested the anthropogenic stress
over Hindon at Ghaziabad. BOD and DO have
significant relationships and directly indicate or-
ganic pollutant load in surface water system. We
observed a negative relationship between BOD
and DO contents for Hindon water (Table 6).
Bhutiani and Khanna (2007) have reported a sim-
ilar pattern for river Suswa. BOD standard for
inland surface water in India is 2, 3 and 3 for
different purposes (Table 5), which are exceeded
to a great extent in Hindon water. COD is also
an important parameter of water indicating the
health scenario of freshwater bodies. COD varied
from 85.0 to 337.4 mg l−1 at different sampling
sites of river Hindon. A trend of decreasing COD
level was at downstream sites. There was a nega-
tive relationship between COD and DO content
(Table 6) for Hindon water. Earlier studies have
2,100
demonstrated the impact of urban runoff and sew-
6.5–8.5
age drainage on river water quality (Mukherjee
– et al. 1993; Alam et al. 2007; Khadse et al. 2008).
– According to the estimation by Mukherjee et al.
600 (1993), about 30% and 47%, respectively, of BOD
and COD come from industrial sources in Indian
river system. DO may be a potential indicator
of river quality in assessing urban impacts on
river ecosystem (Kannel et al. 2007). DO of river
ranged between 3.10 and 4.03 mg l−1 . The max-
imum mean DO was at S-5, followed by S-2
110 Environ Monit Assess (2010) 165:103–112

−0.946 ∗ ∗ −0.741 ∗ ∗ −0.947 ∗ ∗

(3.62 mg l−1 ), S-4 = S-6 (3.49 mg l−1 ), S-3

0.568**
0.940**
0.915**
0.957**
0.780**
0.981**
0.853**
0.658**

0.841**
0.834**
−0.378 NS −0.518∗
(3.41 mg l−1 ) and S-1 (3.10 mg l−1 ) sites. This

1.00
Ca
further indicated the turbulences and flow rate of
river water at different sites, which may be bene-
0.804**
0.817**
0.814**
0.670**
0.849**

0.695**
0.575*

0.586*
0.573*
ficial for dissolved solid breakdown through self-
NO3 −

1.00
pollution regulating mechanisms of lontic water
system. The quality of the water in terms of DO
content is always of primary importance because
0.828**
0.962**
0.907**
0.942**
0.776**
0.916**
0.714**

−0.596∗
0.546*
at the waste discharge points in river, the DO
SO4 2−

1.00
is required for aerobic oxidation of the wastes
(Mukherjee et al. 1993). Also, DO levels are im-
−0.619 ∗ ∗
−0.629 ∗ ∗
−0.317 NS

−0.423 NS

portant in the natural self-purification capacity of

−0.510∗

−0.548∗
−0.544∗
0.615**

−0.197

the river. A good level of DO in sampling sites

1.00
DO

of the river Hindon indicated a high re-aeration

rate and rapid aerobic oxidation of biological
1.00 −0.674 ∗ ∗ −0.970 ∗ ∗ −0.928 ∗ ∗ −0.976 ∗ ∗ −0.789 ∗ ∗ −0.965 ∗ ∗ −0.840 ∗ ∗ −0.623 ∗ ∗
0.464 NS
0.634**

0.609**
0.620**
0.650**

substances. The difference among sampling sites

0.565*

0.565*
1.00
BOD

for DO was of least significance, and probably it

might be related directly to the turbulences and
flow rate of water in the river system.
0.762**
0.649**
0.776**
0.866**
0.802**
0.505*

Correlation matrix between different physic-

1.00
COD

ochemical components is presented in Table 6.

A good correlation was observed between some
important water quality parameters of river
0.688**
0.979**
0.958**
0.988**
0.800**

Hindon, which further indicates the interactions

1.00
TH

of water chemical constituents. pH was signifi-

cantly but negatively correlated with EC, TDS,
TA, TH, Cl− NO3 − , BOD, COD and Ca-
0.820**
0.790**
0.636**
0.753**

2−
, SO4
1.00

hardness, whilst it had a positive relation with DO.

TA

TDS showed significant positive correlation with

all parameters except in DO (Table 7). Total hard-
Table 6 Correlation matrix for different water quality parameters

0.674**
0.977**
0.981**

ness was positively and significantly correlated

1.00

with Cl− , SO4 2− NO3 − , BOD and COD. Similarly,

Cl−

0.620**
0.946**

Table 7 Summary of water quality status of Hindon at

1.00
TDS

Ghaziabad area
Parameters Range Mean SD
0.757 **

pH 7.4–7.9 7.78 0.18

1.00

Turbidity (NTU) 27–115 69.1 32.7

EC

EC (mS) 0.81–5.12 1.89 1.53

TDS (mg l−1 ) 220–2456 1063.3 938.8
TA (mg l−1 )
Turbidity

340–601 455.8 84.1

TH (mg l−1 ) 247–456 289.6 79.7
1.00

* p < 0.05, ** p < 0.01

Ca (mg l−1 ) 64–404 125.8 127.3

NS non-significant

Cl− (mg l−1 ) 201–1,326 461.2 405.2

SO4 2− (mg l−1 )
pH

34–165 70.0 49.8

NO3 − (mg l−1 ) 96–245 160.1 42.3
Turbidity

BOD (mg l−1 ) 25–54 34.8 11.5

SO4 2−

COD (mg l−1 )

NO3 −

85–340 170.2 90.4

COD
BOD
TDS

DO
Cl−
TA
TH

DO (mg l−1 )
EC
pH

Ca

3.0–3.9 3.49 0.33

Environ Monit Assess (2010) 165:103–112
TH and Ca-hardness showed significant relation
with Cl− , NO3 − and SO4 2 .
Hindon pollution source and contamination
Several industrial estates located nearby the river
catchments areas especially in Ghaziabad, Noida,
Sahibadad have been contributing to the river
water pollution. Several nalas carrying industrial
effluents open at different catchment areas of
Hindon could be major polluting agents of river
Hindon at Ghaziabad. Hindon branch divergence
at S-2 site is of primary importance with respect
to Hindon water quality. It passes through the
urban locality of eastern Delhi and ultimately
opens into river Yamuna. This branch is often
used for wastewater disposal and garbage dump-
ing, hence considered as a pollution discharging
source for main streamline of Hindon. It has
been affecting the ecosystem quality of Hindon
directly by loading urban discharge into the main
river stream. The data have revealed that Hindon
water is not fit for any domestic application in
some categories (Table 5). The human settlement
and waste disposal along the route of Hindon
and at its tributary has been affecting the self-
purification system of this river. This study is a
preliminary report on Hindon water quality in
Ghaziabad and adjoining NCT areas, although
further studies on the relationships between river
water quality and health issues of catchment area
residents are needed for comprehensive impact
studies.
Conclusions
The summary of Hindon water quality is pre-
sented in Table 7. It clearly indicates that river wa-
ter is not suitable for domestic purposes. Ranges
of key water quality parameters, e.g. DO, BOD,
COD and TDS, were several times higher than
the prescribed standards for inland water bodies.
Sampling point 1 (S-1) and point 5 (S-5) showed
drastic ranges of pollutant-indicating parameters;
however, both sampling sites are under the cat-
egory of severely polluted sites for river Hindon
at Ghaziabad. The urban runoff and industrial
wastewater discharges in Hindon were the major
111
threat of river water quality at Ghaziabad. Over-
all, water quality of Hindon was relatively poor
with respect to its use for domestic purposes.
Acknowledgements The authors are thankful to Central
Pollution Control Board, New Delhi for providing financial
assistance to carry out this work.
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