Study estimates 80 pc length of rivers posing risks from antibiotic pollution

EIGHTY per cent of total length of India's rivers could be posing environmental and health risks due to antibiotic pollution, a study has estimated.

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Along with India, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Vietnam, and Pakistan are among the countries facing similar risks due to pollution from antibiotics, the research, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) Nexus, said.

Researchers from McGill University, Canada, explained that antibiotics -- they help fight bacterial diseases -- are not completely metabolised while passing through the body, nor completely destroyed or removed by most wastewater treatment facilities.

Potentially 315 million people in India could be exposed to environmental risks arising from rivers contaminated with antibiotics, according to the study, which measured amounts of 21 antibiotics at 877 locations globally.

Findings highlight the need for appropriate wastewater man-