Ground-water is the most dependable, widespread and in most parts the only source of water in India. Despite being a relatively safe source for human consumption from bacterial load point of view, groundwater suffers from various chemical and mineral contaminations like fluoride, arsenic, iron and nitrates. Dissolution from fluoride-bearing minerals and volcanic rocks contaminates the groundwater with fluoride. Till 1999, as many as 17 states of India have been identified with the problem of excessive fluoride in groundwater. The most severely affected amongst these are Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan and Gujarat. Long term consumption of such water (fluoride above 1 ppm) can cause damaged and discolored teeth (dental fluorosis) and debilitating bone ailments (skeletal fluorosis) which are irreversible. The only way out is to prevent the intake of fluoride. The first and most obvious step towards this is identification of fluoride-free sources of groundwater. FDK provides an ideal technology to produce field-kits for this purpose.

The procedure is as simple as adding a specified amount of a reagent to the water sample and identifying the color developed. The color develops almost instantaneously and the distinction can be made with the naked eye. Water sample can be immediately categorized as being safe, marginal or unsafe for drinking from fluoride point of view. Even a layman can perform the test. The kit can be an excellent tool for individual/community level identification of fluoride free groundwater sources. The complete know-how to produce the reagent, the kit and the testing procedures will be provided to the interested parties.

1. Instantaneous results
2. Eliminates the use of sophisticated instruments for analysis
3. Even a layman can use the kit
4. Low investment on infrastructure for producing the kits
5. Easy availability of the raw-materials
6. Instantaneous results
7. Good accuracy for the intended purpose

Ground-water is the most dependable, widespread and in most parts the only source of water in India. Despite being a relatively safe source for human consumption from bacterial load point of view, groundwater suffers from various chemical and mineral contaminations like fluoride, arsenic, iron and nitrates. Dissolution from fluoride-bearing minerals and volcanic rocks contaminates the groundwater with fluoride. Till 1999, as many as 17 states of India have been identified with the problem of excessive fluoride in groundwater- most severely affected amongst these are Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan and Gujarat. Long term consumption of such water (fluoride above 1 ppm) can cause damaged and discolored teeth (dental fluorosis) and debilitating bone ailments (skeletal fluorosis) which are irreversible. The only way out is to prevent the intake of fluoride. The first and most obvious step towards this is identification of safe sources of groundwater. A quick, easy and affordable layman's kit is needed for this purpose. The presently available fluoride detection kits in the market are not suited for individual/local use. They are expensive and can not be used by unskilled persons.

FDK is a simple, user-friendly and highly cost effective kit for estimation of fluoride in groundwater in comparison with the currently available techniques. The procedure is as simple as adding a specified amount of kit reagent to the water sample to be analysed and identifying the color developed. The color develops almost instantaneously and the distinction can be made with the naked eye. For ease of comparison a color chart as well as the color standards are provided in the kit. Water sample can be immediately categorized as being safe, marginal or unsafe for drinking from fluoride point of view. Even a layman can perform the test. There is absolutely no dependence on sophisticated instruments for assembling the kit or using it. The unsafe water sample can be further tested easily to quantify the fluoride level roughly in order to know how unsafe it is. This comes in handy to either compare the levels of toxicity between two sources or to spot the least toxic source of groundwater in an area where the entire groundwater is found fluoride-contaminated.

The FDK kit consists of

FDK reagent	1 bottle (100 ml)
Dilution reagent	1 bottle (100 ml)
Standard Color Solutions	3 Nos. (5 ml each in polypropylene test-tubes)
Graduated 15 ml polypropylene test-tubes	2 Nos.
Color Chart	1 No.

The method of preparing the reagent, assembling the kit, the complete testing procedure as well as the science behind it will be provided as FDK know-how

Infrastructure

1. A laboratory room (3m X 3m) with the following equipment:
   1. 2 glass beakers (250 ml), 1 measuring jar (1L), 1 platform balance, 2 HDPE cans(15L)

Statutory Requirements

1. Statutory clearances for safe handling of various acids and chemicals are required and a minimum of a small scale industries registration is a must.

Raw materials

1. All the raw materials required to utilize the technology for making the fluoride detection kits are freely available in the Indian market

MANPOWER

1. One technician for preparing the reagent and one chemist for carrying out the reagent quality assessment by checking with standards