Spatial distribution and health risk assessment of fluoride contamination in groundwater of Telangana: A state-of-the-art

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The groundwater of Telangana province is well known for its very high fluoride concentration. The main aim of this review is to assess the fluoride contamination, understand the spatial distribution pattern and also evaluate the potential human health risk for adults and children in the Telangana. Fluoride contamination in groundwater is the principal threat to public health in Telangana state in India. It is observed that the mean fluoride concentration in groundwater of ten districts in Telangana showed a decreasing trend: Nalgonda > Warangal > Ranga Reddy > Adilabad > Medak > Khammam > Karimnagar>Hyderabad > Mahabubnagar > Nizamabad. The high fluoride concentration is observed in Nalgonda where the mean fluoride is 5.76 times higher than the recommended limit of 1.5 mg/L for drinking purposes. The fluoride concentration in groundwater derives mainly from the weathering and dissolutions of fluoride bearing minerals. Nalgonda region, the hazard quotient (HQFluoride) for adults and children ranged from 0.79 to 6.54 and 1.07 to 8.84 with an average of 3.01 and 4.07, respectively. In Warangal region, the non-carcinogenic health risk in terms of HQFluoride was found in the range of 0.77 to 2.63 and 1.04 to 3.55 with a mean of 1.46 and 1.97 for adults and children, respectively. Furthermore, children are at highly prone to health risk when compared to adults in the Telangana. Therefore, special care and pure drinking water should be supplied to the rural regions of Telangana.