Physicochemical and Bacteriological Assessment of Water Quality in the Hooghly River, Eastern India

Authors

  • Sudip Basack Department of Civil Engineering, Graphic Era Deemed to be University, Dehradun, India Author
  • Ghritartha Goswami Hydro Informatics Unit, Water Resources Department, Assam Water Center, Guwahati, India Author

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.64229/bc4d2s22

Keywords:

Alkalinity, BOD, COD, Dissolved oxygen, Dissolved solids, Hooghly estuary

Abstract

Rivers play a critical role in sustaining human civilization by supporting domestic, agricultural, and industrial water needs. They also function as pathways for conveying treated and untreated wastes toward downstream environments. The Hooghly, a major distributary of the Ganges, flows through densely populated and industrialized regions of eastern India and is subject to complex interactions among tidal forcing, urban effluents, and sediment dynamics. This study presents a post-monsoon (September 2021) assessment of water quality at seven strategically selected sites, focusing on key physicochemical and bacteriological parameters: total solids (TS), pH, alkalinity, dissolved oxygen (DO), biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), chemical oxygen demand (COD), and total coliforms. DO ranged from 6.0-7.0 mg/L, COD from 3.0-28.1 mg/L, and total coliforms peaked at 74.63 × 105 MPN/L at Garden Reach, indicating localized organic loading and significant fecal contamination. Spatial trends showed heterogeneous conditions influenced by population density, sewage discharge, and tidal hydrodynamics, rather than a uniform upstream-to-downstream gradient. As this represents a single-season snapshot (n = 7 sites), interpretations are conservative and avoid broad generalization. The findings highlight the need for enhanced wastewater management, targeted monitoring of pollution hotspots, and improved treatment strategies to support safe water abstraction and ecological resilience.

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Published

2025-12-16

Issue

Vol. 1 No. 1 (2025)

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Articles

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Copyright (c) 2025 Sudip Basack, Ghritartha Goswami (Author)

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