A judicial inquiry will be conducted into the contaminated drinking water in Indore, and a commission has been formed; 29 people have died so far.

News Topical, Digital Desk : A judicial inquiry will now be conducted into the 29 deaths and illnesses of over 3,300 people due to contaminated drinking water in the Bhagirathpura area of ​​Indore city. A judicial inquiry commission headed by retired High Court judge Sushil Kumar Gupta has been formed to investigate the matter. This commission will submit its interim report to the Indore bench of the High Court within four weeks.

The next hearing in the case will be on March 5, 2026. After hearing five public interest litigations regarding the Bhagiratha Pura contaminated water issue, the High Court reserved its order, which was issued late Tuesday evening. The High Court ordered a judicial inquiry, stating that an independent and impartial commission is necessary to determine the facts.

The court has directed the district administration, municipal corporation, PHE, and pollution control board to cooperate fully with the investigation and provide necessary records and information. This judicial commission will investigate the causes of water contamination in Bhagirathpura, the actual number of deaths, the corporation's claims of providing clean water, and other issues. The commission will be provided with an office, staff, and transportation by the government.

Questions raised on death audit report

The High Court hearing lasted approximately two and a quarter hours on Tuesday. During the hearing, several questions were raised about the death audit report submitted by the government. The report stated that 23 deaths have been analyzed so far, of which 16 were caused by contaminated water. The cause of three deaths is unclear, while four deaths were due to other illnesses.

The court questioned how, without conducting post-mortems, it was determined that only 16 deaths were caused by contaminated water. How did the committee arrive at this 16-death figure? What were the grounds for this conclusion?

The Chief Medical Officer (CMHO) responded that a verbal autopsy had been conducted. When the court asked what a verbal autopsy was, he began to look around. The petitioners also questioned the committee formed by the government for the death audit.

Senior advocate Ajay Bagdiya argued that the committee, which was formed by government medical professors, could not be considered accurate. The court responded that it should be clear what caused the deaths. What are the concrete reasons for believing this, and what are the reasons for rejecting those deaths that were not attributed to contaminated water.

The court expressed concern and said that the situation is dangerous.

During the hearing, the court stated that the situation was very dangerous. As soon as we learned of the Bhagirathpura incident, we had the High Court's water tank inspected. Reports of contaminated water are also coming from Mhow. The government should ensure that the public has access to clean and pure water, but this is not happening.

One more death, toll reaches 29

Contaminated drinking water caused another death in Bhagirathpura on Tuesday, bringing the death toll to 29. Wrestler Khubchand (75) died on Tuesday morning. According to family members, Khubchand had been suffering from vomiting and diarrhea for the past 15 days. He was taken to the Bhagirathpura Primary Health Center, but was given medication and sent home. In the evening, he suddenly vomited and stopped breathing.

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