Asks Health Department authorities to shell out Rs100 per sample Manav Mander Ludhiana, April 28 The Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) authorities have refused to test water samples sent by the Health Department free of cost. They have asked the Health Department to pay Rs 100 per sample and even written to the Civil Surgeon, Ludhiana, in this regard. Left with no other option, the department has halted its drive to collect water samples from city areas for the past one week. On an average, 50-60 water samples are collected by the department each month from the areas located within the limits of the Municipal Corporation, and 70-80 samples from schools located on the periphery. At present, the Health Department is sending water samples to the Public Health Laboratory based in Chandigarh. However, a few samples can be sent to the Chandigarh laboratory since it caters to the entire state. The department has sent only one batch of samples to Chandigarh since the PAU stopped testing samples free of cost. Another hitch in sending samples to Chandigarh is that somebody has to take these personally. The water samples cannot be sent through mail. So, the department collects samples only on those days when somebody is going to Chandigarh on an official visit. While the PAU gives the reports within three days, it takes more than a week to get reports from Chandigarh. Not the first time This is not the first time that the PAU has refused to test water samples sent by the Health Department. Earlier in 2013 and 2014 also the PAU had refused to test samples free of cost. In 2013, then Deputy Commissioner Rahul Tiwari and in 2014, then Deputy Commissioner Rajat Aggarwal had directed the PAU to test the samples free of cost. This time also the Health Department has sent a letter to the Deputy Commissioner to intervene in the matter. Summer is at its peak and it is the time when chances of water contamination are high. Several lives have been lost due to diseases caused by contaminated water in the past years.

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