Figuring of Jammu and Kashmir among the six worst-performing states and Union Territories on a widely circulated water quality index, ranking 31st out of 36 must raise alarm bells ringing.

Amid rising pollution levels, J&K has secured a score of 62 signifying neglect of water bodies. Besides J&K, Ladakh, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi got lower scores pointing towards deeper stress in water bodies. The scores have been shared on a map titled Who has the cleanest water in India by filtercoffeeHQ on its X handle.

These scores are based on data from the Central Pollution Control Board. Mizoram tops the list with a percentage of 92.5, the higher percentage indicating the better water quality. All north-Eastern states have scored high on water quality, while Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh, the other two Himalayan states, also have a fair score of 82% and 83% respectively.

The CPCB data identifies eight polluted water bodies in J&K, including Chuntkul. An outflow channel of Dal Lake, Chuntkul has Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD) of 11.2, while a Jhelum stretch has recorded 7.8 indicating high pollution load. 163 million litres per day (MLD) of sewage is generated in Srinagar however only 60 MLD is treated in STPs while the rest of waste water flows into water bodies.

Beyond these figures, the condition of most of the water bodies in Kashmir is........

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