A severe public health crisis has struck the Bhagirathpura area of Indore, resulting in three fatalities and multiple hospitalizations after residents consumed contaminated water supplied through municipal taps. The incident, which began on Monday, has exposed nearly 15,000 people to the risk of waterborne diseases.
Deaths and Hospitalizations Trigger Emergency Response
On Tuesday, three individuals admitted to different hospitals succumbed to their illnesses. The patients were suffering from severe symptoms of vomiting and diarrhoea. While thirty-five others hospitalized since Monday night have been discharged, new patients, including women and children, continued to be rushed to hospitals throughout the day.
Chief Minister Mohan Yadav termed the incident "extremely tragic" and announced a compensation of Rs 2 lakh to the kin of each deceased. He assured that the state would bear the cost of treatment for all hospitalized patients and directed the local administration to ensure prompt and quality medical care.
The exact cause of death will be confirmed after a post-mortem examination, as stated by Mayor Pushyamitra Bhargava.
Source of Contamination Identified
The Indore Municipal Corporation (IMC) launched an urgent investigation to trace the source of the contamination. IMC Commissioner Dileep Kumar Yadav reported that the contamination point was identified near the Bhagirathpura police check post.
The investigation revealed a shocking lapse: a newly constructed toilet was dumping its waste into a sinkhole instead of a proper septic tank. This sinkhole was located directly above a joint in the main water supply pipeline, allowing sewage to seep into the drinking water.
"Prima facie it appears to be a case of negligence by people responsible for water supply and laying pipelines," Mayor Bhargava said.
Ongoing Relief Measures and Political Reaction
The health department has organized medical camps and is screening residents in the affected locality. The IMC staff carried out cleaning drives and distributed chlorine tablets. Authorities have advised all residents to consume only boiled water until the situation is fully resolved.
As a corrective measure, the IMC plans to flush the entire water pipeline for the next two days. In the meantime, the civic body is supplying safe drinking water to the area using around 60-70 tankers.
The incident has sparked political outrage. The Congress party held a press conference demanding the immediate sacking of the engineers responsible for the drainage and water pipeline work. Leader of the opposition in IMC, Chintu Chouksey, alleged that the primary responsibility lay with engineers from the Narmada water supply project and called for a criminal probe against them.
Mayor Bhargava emphasized that the current priority is to control the situation, adding that a thorough probe will be conducted and punishment will be decided based on its findings.
