Seven people have died and over 1,100 have been affected by contaminated drinking water in Indore’s Bhagirathpura area.
MP minister Kailash Vijayvargiya admitted lapses and said officials will not be spared regardless of rank.
A pipeline leak beneath a toilet structure is suspected to have caused contamination; officials have been suspended and an IAS-led probe ordered.
Madhya Pradesh minister Kailash Vijayvargiya on Wednesday acknowledged lapses by officials in connection with contaminated drinking water in Indore, an incident that has claimed seven lives so far, and said action would be taken against those found guilty regardless of rank, according to PTI.
The outbreak has been reported from Bhagirathpura, an area in Indore that has seen a surge in vomiting and diarrhoea cases over the past week. Mayor Pushyamitra Bhargava confirmed that seven people have died after falling ill due to contaminated water, PTI reported. More than 1,100 residents have been affected in some form, officials said, with 111 patients requiring hospital admission during this period.
Bhagirathpura falls under Vijayvargiya’s Indore-1 assembly constituency. Responding to questions on the incident, the minister, who also holds the Assembly Affairs portfolio, told reporters, “I feel that a mistake has been committed, but it is better if we first ensure that all patients recover and create a positive environment rather than discuss this now.” He added that those responsible for the contamination would not be spared, even if they held senior positions.
On the reported fatalities, Vijayvargiya said, “I will not comment on this at present because some people have died natural deaths, while some fatalities have occurred in this incident as well. Therefore, after an inquiry by doctors and the administration, we will share the figures.” He noted that while the number of people suffering from vomiting and diarrhoea in Bhagirathpura has declined, hospital admissions and treatment at health centres were still continuing, according to PTI.
The minister said four ambulances and dedicated teams of medical personnel had been deployed in the affected area. Separate wards have also been set up for patients at the government-run Maharaja Yashwantrao Hospital and the private Shri Aurobindo Institute of Medical Sciences. Private hospitals in Bhagirathpura have been informed that the state government will bear the full cost of treatment for all affected patients, he added.
Municipal Corporation Commissioner Dilip Kumar Yadav said a leakage had been detected in the main water supply pipeline in Bhagirathpura. A toilet was found constructed above the damaged section, and the water supply was possibly contaminated due to this leakage.
Following instructions from Chief Minister Mohan Yadav, a zonal officer and an assistant engineer of the Indore Municipal Corporation have been suspended with immediate effect, while the services of an in-charge sub-engineer have been terminated, an official said. A three-member committee headed by an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer has been constituted to probe the incident, PTI reported.
(With inputs from PTI)
