Contaminated water deaths: LoP to raise issue in MP Assembly, demands report must be in public domain

Indore, Aug 30 (IANS) The Leader of the Opposition in the state Assembly, Umang Singhar, has said that the Bhagirathpura contaminated water incident will be raised in the Madhya Pradesh Assembly in the next session.

Singhar stated that he would place the entire matter before the House and demand that the government make the judicial committee’s report public. The Opposition leader emphasised that the issue is not confined to Bhagirathpura alone but concerns the quality of water being consumed across Indore district.

Blaming officials is insufficient, he said, adding that politicians and public representatives cannot evade their responsibility. Strict action must be taken against all those found guilty in the case, he said.

The one-member judicial committee of the High Court was constituted to investigate the deaths of 36 people linked to contaminated water in Indore’s Bhagirathpura area. Although the report has not been officially released, several key findings have come to light.

Advocates, following the case, have said the High Court is likely to decide on a plea seeking public disclosure of the report in the forthcoming hearing.

According to lawyers associated with the matter, the committee has attributed 24 of the 36 deaths directly to the consumption of contaminated water, while the circumstances of the remaining 12 deaths remain unclear.

The report is said to recommend compensation of Rs 20 lakh to the families of those who died due to the contaminated water. It has also suggested Rs 5 lakh compensation for citizens who fell seriously ill or were otherwise affected.

Lawyers further stated that the report has given a clean chit to the Mayor-in-Council (MIC) and public representatives.

The Leader of the Opposition has made it clear that the government must ensure full transparency by placing the complete report in the public domain and that accountability cannot be limited to the bureaucracy.

The contaminated water incident in Bhagirathpura had triggered widespread concern over civic administration and water supply systems in Indore.

With the judicial findings now partially known and the Opposition set to raise the issue in the Assembly, pressure is mounting on the state government to respond comprehensively, make the report public and ensure that affected families receive the recommended compensation without delay.

–IANS

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