RAJSHAHI. Dec 11: Severe arsenic contamination '.has been detected In Char£hat thana of the district creating panic among the people of the locality, reports UNB.

A local NGO — Rajshahi Mo-hila Sangstha — tested waters of 13 tube-wells of Miapur village in the thana in their laboratory and found six of them contaminated by excessive arsenic contents.

The tube-well of the house of State Minister for Water Resources Dr Alauddin was among the contaminated ones detected in the survey.

Local officials Identified 72 people of the village affected with arsenic related diseases, but unofficial sources put the figure much higher saying that most of the family members of Miapara and Khalishpur areas have been affected.

According to World Health Organisation (WHO), 0.05 mg arsenic per litre of water is the tolerable limit for Bangladesh. But samples collected from different parts of the thana indicated that the presence of the deadly element is as high as 0.51 mg in the waters of some of the tube-wells, which is extremely dangerous for public health.

The authorities and the agencies involved in conducting the survey have sealed the affected tube-wells and asked the people not to use its water.