Assessment of groundwater quality for drinking purposes in Jhang city, Punjab

Groundwater, which is present in aquifers beneath the Earth's surface and is used for drinking purposes throughout Jhang City, is a crucial resource. The quality of drinking water is impacted by groundwater contamination in one way or another, which ultimately harms human health. The current study aims to evaluate the drinking water quality of the groundwater near culvert drainage in Jhang City, Punjab. With the aid of the standardized method APHA 23rd edition, samples that were collected from 9 different areas were examined for 20 parameters, including EC, pH, turbidity, alkalinity, bicarbonates, calcium, carbonates, chlorides, total hardness, magnesium, potassium, sodium, sulphate, nitrate, TDS, arsenic, and bacteria at the Environmental lab of IIUI and testing laboratory of PCRWR. The results of the sample analysis show that the overall quality of drinking water is unacceptable and exceeds PEQs and WHO requirements. The first three samples taken close to the drainage had the highest level of pollution.