Description
The large number of bacteria in the water is believed to be the cause of the disease. (Representative) The number of people who fell ill after allegedly drinking contaminated water in a dozen villages in Nadaun subdivision, Hamirpur district, Himachal Pradesh, rose to 535 on Sunday. Residents of a dozen villages including Banh, Jandgi Gujran, Jandali Rajputan, Panyala, Pathiyalu, Niyati, Rangas Chowki Haar, Thain and Sankar have been affected by the outbreak of waterborne diseases.
Rangas panchayat chief Rajeev Kumar said earlier in the day that the number of sick people had exceeded 300. Some patients were referred to hospitals in Hamirpur.
Two to three people in each household fell ill after drinking contaminated water provided by the Jal Shakti department, it added.
The large number of bacteria in the water is believed to be the cause of the illness, Kumar said. He attributed it to the contamination of the pit from which the water comes out.
Villagers said the water was supplied unfiltered from a tank under construction, prompting the outbreak.
Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, who is also a Naudan MP, has ordered the district administration and health department to take care of patients and ensure there is no shortage of medicines and other items.
He also requested a full report from state and district agencies.
Teams from the health department have reached the affected villages to provide treatment to people under the direct supervision of Medical Director (Hamirpur) Dr. RK Agnihotri.
Officials from Jal Shakti's department sprang into action. It cut off the water supply to the affected villages and sent samples for analysis.
Bottled water is being distributed to the population after the supply was cut off, said a young engineer from the department.
Deputy Commissioner Debasweta Banik said that essential medicines, ORS sachets, chlorine tablets and other materials were delivered to the villages through doctors, health workers and Asha.
