Indore : A deadly water contamination crisis in Madhya Pradesh’s Indore has sparked a fierce political storm, with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi accusing the BJP-led administration of allowing “poison” to be supplied to households, even as at least ten people have died in a diarrhoea outbreak. In Indore, not water but poison was distributed, and the administration remained in deep sleep,” Rahul Gandhi wrote on X.
The Congress MP questioned how sewage entered drinking water pipelines and why supply was not stopped in time, asking when action would be taken against those responsible. “These are not free questions. This is a demand for accountability. Clean water is not a favour, it is a right to life,” he said, holding the BJP’s “double engine” government responsible for what he called the killing of that right.
Rahul Gandhi also linked the Indore deaths to what he described as a wider collapse of governance in Madhya Pradesh, citing past incidents including deaths linked to cough syrup and negligence in government hospitals. “When the poor die, Modi ji remains silent, as always,” he added. Indore Mayor Pushyamitra Bhargava was quoted as saying that he had received information about ten deaths due to a diarrhoea outbreak caused by contaminated water in the Bhagirathpura area.
Visuals circulating from the affected localities showed grieving families, including one household that lost a months old child, underscoring the scale of the tragedy. According to health department data, four people have died due to the diarrhoea outbreak in Bhagirathpura. However, I have received information about ten deaths,” Bhargava said, adding that further details on suspected cholera could only be shared by health officials.
The Indore Municipal Corporation said emergency measures are underway. Additional Commissioner Rohit Sisoniya said teams have been working round the clock to identify leakage points and restore safe supply. Our priority was to identify the fault and the leakage. We have been continuously testing the water and taking samples. The report of samples sent four days ago showed contamination in 26 out of 50 samples,” he said, adding that tankers have been deployed and residents are being asked to boil water before drinking.
As outrage mounted, the Indore bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court took up the issue on Friday, enquiring whether water tankers were being supplied to neighbourhoods hit by contamination. A second petition on the same issue has also been filed. After a brief hearing, the matter was passed over and is expected to be taken up again shortly. The judicial intervention comes amid growing questions over the administration’s response as the scale of the health crisis becomes clearer.
The scale of the outbreak has alarmed health authorities. More than 1,400 people have been affected by vomiting and diarrhoea in Bhagirathpura over the past nine days. As of Thursday night, 272 patients had been admitted to hospitals, of whom 71 were discharged. Thirty-two of the 201 patients currently hospitalised are undergoing treatment in intensive care units. The Indore Municipal Corporation said emergency measures were underway.