Assessing the impact of drinking water quality on public health: A case study of filter plants in a residential university

This study focuses on the monitoring of drinking water quality and its impacts on public health. Physicochemical and microbial analysis (Most Probable Number) was performed to assess drinking water quality. A structured health survey was conducted among residents to assess the impact of water quality on community health and chi square test was applied to relate variables using STATA MP-17 software. T-test was applied on physicochemical and microbial parameters using Python. Physicochemical parameters were within Pakistan Standards for Drinking Water Quality limit except Chemical Oxygen Demand (74.6-266.6 mg/L) while concentration of Escherichia coli exceeded the recommended World Health Organization limits in all samples indicating risk to public health. It was observed that many respondents were facing health problems like skin dryness (82 %), stains on teeth (58 %) and eye irritation (56 %). Chi-square test revealed that duration of water consumption was significantly related to jaundice (p < 0.05) while amount of daily water consumption was significantly related to hepatitis (p < 0.05). The findings highlight the need for improved disinfection and maintenance practices in water treatment systems.