Indore borewell water deaths inside story: Two months ago, a call was received on the helpline of the Mayor of Indore. On October 15, Dinesh Bharti Verma noticed something wrong in the water in a well near a local temple in Bhagirathpura. He reported that borewell water has mixed with sewage. Visitors to the temple needed clean water.
No action was taken on this complaint, and another application for relief was made in November. This time, Shivani Thakle, another resident of Ward 11, Indore, claimed that acid was mixed in the water.
By December the situation was out of control, and people were getting sick. On December 18, residents complained of a terrible stench emanating from the Narmada water supply. On 28 December, Ganesh Parasakar and Yash Parvena reported that 90% of the people in their ward had fallen ill, complaining of vomiting, diarrhea and dehydration.
Then, on December 29, when the first death occurred due to this contaminated water, the administration was shaken. Eight people have died, and 200 have been hospitalized due to this contaminated water in Bhagirathpura.
After initial investigation, it is being said that the water was contaminated as a toilet was built on the drinking water pipeline. The administration has officially confirmed only four deaths, and 212 people are hospitalized.
Now, after examining the municipal corporation data, it has been revealed that despite numerous complaints, the administration has not taken any action, and that is why these deaths are happening. Last year, 266 complaints of contaminated water were registered in Indore.
Zone 4, which includes Bhagirathpura, received 23 complaints. Here, Assistant Engineer Yogesh Joshi received 16 complaints about contaminated water last year; Five were resolved, and the remaining seven were closed without action.
The investigation revealed that preparations were underway to lay the new Narmada water pipeline several months before the death due to this contaminated water. Officials did their own site inspection, and tenders were issued.
This file was prepared on November 12, 2024. Significantly, the program for the final phase of the project was issued on December 26, 2025, when reports of deaths began to emerge.
Corporator Kamal Vaghela has now broken his silence on the death. Bhagirathpura falls under his jurisdiction. He explains that the decision to lay the Narmada water pipeline was taken last year. A file was then prepared. However, according to Vaghela, the file was postponed for seven months.
The situation got so bad that Vaghela was forced to write a letter to Chief Minister Mohan Yadav. In the letter, he explained that despite numerous complaints, officials only said that the work was still going on.
Vaghle now says that the death was not simply the result of administrative negligence, but a gross criminal negligence which knowingly endangered public health. Prima facie, this case falls under the category of gross negligence of duty, disobedience of orders and violation of public health laws.
However, Bablu Prasad, water officer of the same area, explains that what happened in Bhagirathpura is a major structural failure, an area where roads are only 10-12 feet wide. He says that when he started work in the area three years ago, the drainage system was already damaged.
He believes that the tendrils were installed, but the authorities did not act. A new pipeline was needed, but was never replaced.
Now that so many deaths are happening, officials have resorted to rhetoric. Additional Commissioner Rohit Sisonia, speaking to The Indian Express, says that it would be wrong to say that no work has been done to replace the pipeline.
There are three lines: main line, distribution line and household line. Work on the pipeline has been initiated in conjunction with the AMRUT 2.0 scheme of the central government. According to the official, the tender being questioned today was awarded several months ago.
Pipeline work is also underway under the AMRUT scheme. How can work be initiated on the tender given the possibility of financial irregularities?
Elaborating on the cause of the contaminated water, Sisonia said, “Our investigation revealed that a small police post was built above the main pipeline. A toilet was built there, but it lacked a safety tank, which allowed all the contaminated waste to accumulate in a pit.
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The main water pipeline had broken under that pit, causing the water to be contaminated. We collected samples from the site, and investigation confirmed that these samples were contaminated and could cause diarrhoea.”