Pharmaceutical Effluents and Characteristic Changes in River Water Quality in Baddi Region, Himachal, India

The present work deals with the study of physico-chemical parameters of industrial effluents of five pharmaceutical industries entering into common effluent treatment plant (CETP). The study reveals that the effluents from pharmaceutical industriesin Baddi (H. P. ) has changed the water quality of the Sarsa River in which effluent has been discharged after ttreatment. Besides other industries in the surrounding, pharmaceutical industries are also responsible for polluting the aquatic environment. During these investigations, It has been observed that temperature in the effluents of all the industries ranged from 24 0C to 26 0C, pH values ofpharmaceutical Industrieswere in the limit of 1.63 to 8.57, Pharmaceutical Industry 1 has shown drastic decrease in pH level. Alkalinity was found to range between 700-1100 mg/l in all the effleunt samples. Pharmaceutical Industry 1& 5 have shown alarming levelof total hardness. These results highlight that the discharge of highly polluted effluentsfrom the pharmaceutical industries of Baddi, H. P. has beencausing pollution of nearby Sarsa River, thereby affecting vegetation and aquatic life. Therefore, compatible policies and programmes to further improve the water treatment technology used in effluent treatment plants should be implemented.