Rejuvenation of Jamuna Drinking Water Supply Storage Pond through Bioremediation, Golaghat

The rejuvenation of the Jamuna water storage pond in Golaghat demonstrates the effectiveness of ecological engineering in restoring degraded water bodies. Implemented by TERI in collaboration with stakeholders, the project transformed a eutrophic, weed-infested pond into a functional pre-treatment system for municipal water supply.

The intervention integrated desilting with advanced bioremediation techniques, including desiltation of inflow river water, floating island root zone systems, microbial formulations, periodic application of microbial mud balls and pH adjustment. Continuous monitoring and adaptive management ensured sustained water quality improvement.

Key achievements:

• Turbidity reduced by over 70 per cent improving water clarity
• Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD) reduced by 81.2 per cent
• Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) reduced by 65.6 per cent
• Total Dissolved Solid (TDS) reduced by 72.9 per cent
• Total Hardness reduced by 54.1 per cent
• Nitrate reduced by 93.5 per cent

The system now functions as an effective natural settling and pre-treatment unit, reducing the load on downstream treatment infrastructure. Seasonal variations and aquatic weed inflow are managed through engineered solutions and continuous treatment.

Overall, the project has improved ecological stability, improved water quality, and increased the system efficiency. Post-rejuvenation, the pond can store sufficient raw water to meet approximately 3–5 days of Golaghat’s daily demand (~36 lakh litres).