ADO Additives and the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER), Kolkata, have devised a solution to detect the level of arsenic in water and also to remove it.

The ADO Muktadhara — ‘Arsenic Sensor and Removal Media’ — promises to provide an effective sensing of the level of arsenic in water in a ‘simple and cost-effective manner’.

Marketing strategies

According to Sanjib Parial, Managing director and CEO, ADO Additives, while the arsenic sensor will be made commercially available in the market immediately, the company is in talks with several water purifier brands to introduce the cartridge in their machines.

“We are in talks with several water purifier brands and hope that something will fructify in a month,” Parial told newspersonshere.

The company will collaborate with the State government to distribute the sensors. Plans are also afoot for the construction of a water treatment plant.

While the product will be initially available in West Bengal, based on its success, it will be rolled out pan-India, he said.

Arsenic contamination

West Bengal has the highest number of arsenic-affected people in the country.

As per a recent report, there are 83 blocks in eight districts where the groundwater is arsenic contaminated.

Concerns have been rising of diseases due to exposure to high concentration of arsenic in groundwater even at deep levels.

The methodology currently available for testing the level of arsenic in water is tedious, expensive and difficult to be conducted at home, said Raja Shunmugam, Associate Professor and Ramanujan National Fellow, Department of Chemical Sciences, IISER Kolkata.

The arsenic sensor will be priced at ₹250 for 50 paper strips. The testing kits currently available in the market are priced at ₹6,000-8,000. The cartridge will be priced at ₹500 apiece.

“Depending on the level of arsenic contamination and the quantity of water processed, a household may have to use two-three cartridges a year,” Shunmugam said.

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