Indian community fights against arsenic contamination

Many people in Indian villages are forced to drink water contaminated with arsenic, but one woman is taking measures against this by making filters, it has been reported.

Sahidun Bewa, aged 30, has been concentrating on making and distributing filters for use in the officially arsenic-prone area of Nadia in west Bengal, News Blaze reported.

Each filter can help save up to five lives, as consuming arsenic through drinking water can lead to skin lesions and various cancers - the symptoms of which may take years to appear.

Director of the school of Environmental Studies Dr Dipankar Chakraborty stated: "Infants and children might be at greater risk from arsenic toxicity because of more water consumption on body weight basis."

In other water news, Chinese minister Zhang Jiyao last week called for work designed to tackle Beijing's water shortages to speed up.