A laboratory test has confirmed that a vomiting-diarrhoea outbreak in Indore, which has killed at least four people and affected over 1,400, was caused by contaminated drinking water, officials said on Thursday.
The findings highlight serious issues in the city’s drinking water supply, despite Indore being ranked India’s cleanest city for the past eight years.
Indore's chief medical and health officer (CMHO) Dr Madhav Prasad Hasani told reporters that a laboratory report prepared by a city-based medical college confirmed drinking water was contaminated due to a leakage in a pipeline in the Bhagirathpura area, from where the outbreak has been reported.
He did not share detailed findings of the report. Officials said a leakage was found in the main drinking water supply pipeline near a police outpost in Bhagirathpura at a spot over which a toilet has been constructed.
They claimed the leakage led to contamination of the water supply in the area.
Additional chief secretary Sanjay Dubey told PTI, "We are closely examining the entire drinking water supply pipeline in Bhagirathpura to find out if there is any leakage elsewhere."
He said after inspection, clean water was supplied to households in Bhagirathpura through the pipeline on Thursday, though as a precaution people have been advised to use the water for drinking only after boiling it.
"We have also taken samples of this water and sent them for testing," Dubey said.
Drawing lessons from the water tragedy in Bhagirathpura, Dubey informed that a standard operating procedure (SOP) will be issued for the entire state to prevent such incidents in the future.
He visited Bhagirathpura to review the situation on instructions of Chief Minister Mohan Yadav. A health department official said that during a survey of 1,714 households in Bhagirathpura on Thursday, 8,571 people were examined.
Of them, 338 people showing mild symptoms of vomiting-diarrhoea were given primary treatment at their homes. He said that in the eight days since the outbreak, 272 patients were admitted to local hospitals, of whom 71 have been discharged so far.
At present, 201 patients are admitted in hospitals, including 32 in intensive care units (ICUs), the official added.
The National Human Rights Commission on Thursday issued a notice to the Madhya Pradesh government over the death of seven people and more than 40 falling ill after allegedly consuming contaminated water in the Bhagirathpura area of Indore district.
Reportedly, locals had been complaining about the "supply of contaminated water for several days", but no action was taken by authorities, the apex rights body said.
The NHRC has taken suo motu cognisance of media reports that at least seven people died and more than 40 others fell ill after consuming contaminated water.
According to Mayor Pushyamitra Bhargava, preliminary assessment suggested that drainage water entered the drinking water pipeline due to a leakage, triggering an outbreak of diarrhoea and vomiting in the Bhagirathpura area.
The commission observed that it raises a serious issue of violation of the human rights of the victims. As such, a notice has been issued to the chief secretary of the Madhya Pradesh government, seeking a detailed report in two weeks.
Locals claimed that at least eight people, including six women, have died in the past week after falling ill due to consumption of contaminated water in Bhagirathpura.
Chief Minister Mohan Yadav expressed grief over the incident and announced financial assistance of Rs 2 lakh each to the families of the deceased, besides saying the government would bear the entire cost of treatment of all patients.
