At least 142 people, including 11 in intensive care units, are currently undergoing treatment in hospitals in Indore following a diarrhoea outbreak caused by contaminated drinking water. Health officials said 20 new cases were detected during the screening of more than 9,000 residents in Bhagirathpura, the epicentre of the outbreak.
Officials said health teams surveyed 9,416 people from 2,354 households in Bhagirathpura, where six deaths have been officially confirmed so far due to water contamination. The survey identified 20 fresh diarrhoea cases.
According to the administration, a total of 398 patients were hospitalised after the outbreak, of whom 256 have been discharged following recovery. Officials said the situation is now under control.
Chief Medical and Health Officer Dr Madhav Prasad Haasani said a team from the National Institute for Research in Bacterial Infections (NIRBI), Kolkata, has arrived in Indore to investigate the outbreak and provide technical support to contain the spread.
While the administration has confirmed six deaths, Mayor Pushyamitra Bhargava earlier stated that 10 people had died. Local residents, however, have claimed that as many as 16 persons, including a six-month-old infant, lost their lives.
The incident triggered political protests across Madhya Pradesh, with the Congress staging bell-ringing demonstrations demanding the resignation of senior minister Kailash Vijayvargiya. The protests followed Vijayvargiya’s controversial remark on December 31, when he responded with the word “ghanta” to reporters’ questions about the water contamination crisis.
The Congress demanded a judicial inquiry into the deaths and sought the removal of Vijayvargiya, who holds the Urban Development and Housing portfolios and represents the Indore-1 constituency, which includes Bhagirathpura. State Congress president Jitu Patwari warned of statewide agitation on January 11 if corrective measures were not taken.
Patwari also demanded the registration of a culpable homicide case against Mayor Bhargava and concerned civic officials. He alleged that residents had been complaining for the past eight months about contaminated water from municipal tap connections, without any remedial action. He further claimed that water supplied through municipal tankers was also contaminated.
Meanwhile, a sub-divisional magistrate (SDM) in neighbouring Dewas district was suspended on Sunday for alleged negligence after portions of a Congress memorandum were reportedly reproduced verbatim in an official order related to law and order arrangements during protests.
Ujjain division revenue commissioner Ashish Singh said the suspension was ordered on grounds of serious negligence, indifference, and procedural irregularities.
Renowned water conservationist and Magsaysay Award winner Rajendra Singh termed the incident a “system-created disaster,” alleging corruption in water supply infrastructure. He said sewage overflow into drinking water pipelines led to severe vomiting and diarrhoea.
“If such a tragedy can occur in India’s cleanest city, it reflects the grave condition of drinking water systems elsewhere,” Singh said, attributing the crisis to cost-cutting practices that place water pipelines close to drainage lines and to the city’s declining groundwater levels.
