Indore water contamination

MP CM fires top officials after 10 dead, Uma Bharti calls for ‘repentance’

Indore (TIP)- The water crisis in Indore’s Bhagirathpura area has claimed at least 10 lives, while more than 1,400 people have been affected by vomiting and diarrhoea, officials said, as contaminated drinking water triggered a major public health crisis in Madhya Pradesh. Amid the outrage and opposition’s attack, Madhya Pradesh chief minister Mohan Yadav said he had ordered strict action against erring civic officials and the Additional Commissioner from Indore and Superintending Engineer in-charge.
In a post on X, he wrote, “…I issued directions to the Indore Municipal Corporation Commissioner and Additional Commissioner to issue a show-cause notice in this regard, to immediately remove the Additional Commissioner from Indore, and to relieve the In-Charge Superintending Engineer of the charge of the Water Distribution Works Department. I also issued directions to immediately fill the necessary positions in the Indore Municipal Corporation with effect from now.”
Chief Medical and Health Officer (CMHO) of Indore, Madhav Prasad Hasani, said senior doctors and district administration officials were closely monitoring the situation to ensure proper treatment of affected patients.
“Currently, senior doctors and district administration officials are continuously monitoring the situation at the hospitals and keeping a check that proper treatment is being ensured to the patients. I am going for the hearing of a case regarding this contaminated water issue and give further details later. Till now, as per records, four deaths occurred though we will revise and update if we received additional data and evidence in this regard,” Hasani told ANI.
Earlier, HT had reported that preliminary findings of an inquiry into the deaths of at least nine people in Bhagirathpura confirmed the presence of bacteria typically found in sewage in drinking water samples, three days after residents were first hospitalised with symptoms of vomiting and diarrhoea.
Cabinet Minister and Indore-1 MLA Kailash Vijayvargiya described the incident as “unfortunate” and said the number of patients admitted to hospitals had fluctuated. “It was increasing yesterday [Tuesday] but has reduced today,” he said. While Vijayvargiya remained stationed in the affected locality, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav visited several hospitals to meet patients undergoing treatment.
IMC Commissioner Dileep Yadav told The Hindu that the suspended and dismissed officials failed to identify leakages in time. “A main leakage from a toilet drainage over the main supply line has been repaired and the toilet has been dismantled. Various other leakages were also found and repaired. We will test the water supply tomorrow and check for any leakages and water quality. The supply will be resumed once everything is fine,” Mr. Yadav said. He added that more than 100 water tankers had been deployed to meet residents’ immediate needs.
Meanwhile, the Madhya Pradesh High Court issued notices to the State authorities and sought a status report on the matter by January 2. Hearing two petitions, the court also directed that patients be provided treatment free of cost after a Bhagirathpura resident alleged that private hospitals were refusing care without payment. Advocate Abhinav Dhanodkar, appearing for the petitioner, said: “We have also requested the court to form a probe committee headed by a retired High Court judge to ensure such incidents are not repeated.”