Seasonal Variation of heavy metal concentration in water of River Yamuna, Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh, India

The environmental contaminations by the toxic substances are growing that cause major concern to the local users. A wide range of contaminants are continuously introduced into the aquatic environment mainly due to increased industrialization, technological development, growing human population and exploitation of natural resources, agricultural and domestic wastes run-off. Among these contaminants, heavy metals constitute one of the most dangerous groups because of their persistent nature, toxicity, tendency to accumulate in organisms and undergo food chain amplification and more still, they are nondegradable. Heavy metals with adverse health effects in human metabolism (including lead, copper, cadmium and arsenic) present obvious concerns due to their persistence in the environment and documented potential for serious health consequences. Acute heavy metal intoxications may damage central nervous function, the cardiovascular and gastro intestinal (GI) systems, lungs, kidneys, liver, endocrine glands, and bones. It is not possible to completely avoid exposure to toxic metals. Even people who are not occupationally exposed carry certain metals in their body as a result of exposure from other sources, such as food, beverages, or air. It is, however, possible to reduce metal toxicity risk through lifestyle choices ISSN: 2319-7706 Volume 3 Number 7 (2014) pp. 945-949 http://www.ijcmas.com