State toll at 6, doctors’ panel finds 15 Indore deaths due to foul water

BHOPAL: A venire of doctors from a regime medical college has attributed at to the lowest degree 15 deaths in Madhya Pradesh’s Indore to the recent irruption of diarrhoea triggered by polluted drinking water in the Bhagirathpura area, a senior official confirmed on Tuesday.While the state health department has confirmed six deaths so far due to consumption of contaminated drinking water in Bhagirathpura, residents have claimed the toll to be much higher. To be sure, the state administration has distributed compensation of ₹2 lakh each to 18 affected families, saying it wants to “help” those who have lost their dear ones.Amid conflicting claims over the toll, a team of five doctors from Mahatma Gandhi Medical College (MGM), Indore studied 21 deaths reported since the outbreak of vomiting and diarrhoea began on December 29 last year. “Their mandate was to find how many have died because of drinking contaminated drinking water,” a senior health official said, requesting anonymity. The panel submitted the death analysis report to the government on Tuesday.Of the 21 deaths analysed, 15 were linked to “diarrhoea and related symptoms caused by contaminated water,” Indore divisional commissioner Sudam Khade said, citing the report.The commissioner added that post-mortem reports in two of these cases were awaited while the remaining four deaths were attributed to reasons such as kidney failure and cardiac arrest.The report was prepared by the five-member panel comprising Dr Suraj Sahu, Dr Akhilesh, Dr Himanshu, Dr Sanjay Dubey, and Dr Sunil Soni, officials said.“The team analysed each case based on treatment records, symptoms, medical history, and documents submitted by hospitals and family members,” a doctor, who was part of the five-member panel, said. “Since many victims were cremated without a post-mortem examination, it was difficult to establish the exact cause of death. Family statements and administrative records often contradicted each other, so we relied solely on medical evidence to reach a conclusion.”On Monday, a 72-year-old man, Bhagwan Bhame, from Bhagirathpura died at Indore-based Bombay Hospital, where he was undergoing treatment since December 30 with diarrhoea symptoms. According to his family, Bhame was admitted to a private hospital at 11.30pm on December 30 after complaining of vomiting and diarrhoea. His condition deteriorated within hours of getting admitted at the hospital and he suffered a heart attack. He was then referred to Bombay Hospital on January 3.“He suffered a cardiac arrest when he was brought to the hospital. He was given CPR and then placed on a ventilator. He was also suffering from multiple organ failure,” Bombay Hospital’s manager Rahul Parashar said.Amid the gastroenteritis outbreak triggered by contaminated drinking water supply, the health department has intensified screening of people, with 4,827 residents being screened on Monday, officials said.At least 12 new patients suffering from diarrhoea were reported at a health facility in Indore on Monday, officials said, adding that at present, 39 patients are undergoing treatment in hospitals, including 10 in intensive care units (ICUs).Meanwhile, a team from the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has submitted its investigation report in the Bhagirathpura incident to the National Health Mission in Bhopal. The details of the report remain unknown.