The number of people falling ill after allegedly drinking contaminated water in a dozen villages of Himachal Pradesh’s Hamirpur district rose to 535 on Sunday. People in villages including Banah, Jandgi Gujran, Jandali Rajputan, Panyala, Pathiyalu, Niyati, Rangas Chowki Haar, Thane and Shankar have been affected by the outbreak of water-borne diseases. Rangas panchayat pradhan Rajeev Kumar said earlier in the day that the number of sick people had crossed 300. Some patients have been referred to hospitals in Hamirpur.
Kumar said that two to three people in every household have fallen ill after consuming contaminated water provided by the Jal Shakti Department. It is believed that the high concentration of bacteria in the water is causing the disease, Kumar further said. Villagers said unfiltered water was supplied from an under-construction tank, which led to the outbreak.
Chief Minister Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu has instructed the district administration and health department to take proper care of the patients and ensure that there is no shortage of medicines. Presently the health department teams are treating the patients. The CM has also sought a complete report from state and district level agencies on the matter.
After the incident, the officials of Jal Shakti Department have stopped the water supply in the affected villages. However, bottled water is being distributed among the people. Giving her statement on the current situation in Hamirpur, Deputy Commissioner of Police Debashweta Banik said that necessary medicines, ORS packets, chlorine tablets and other materials have been delivered to the villages through doctors, health and ASHA workers.
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