Indore, Jan 2: In a narrow, quiet lane of Marathi Mohalla, the silence is heavy in the Sahu family with grief that no amount of money can compensate, as they mourn their six-month-old baby, born after ten years of fervent prayers, medical treatments and sacred vows.
Last week, baby Avyan, referred to as a miracle child by the family, was extinguished by a simple, everyday act of diluting the infant’s milk with tap water.
Baby Avyan is now the youngest face of a devastating water contamination crisis in Indore’s Bhagirathpura area, a tragedy that has turned India’s “cleanest city” into a site of mourning.
Avyan’s grandmother, Krishna Sahu, said, “We have not taken any compensation from the state government so far. Our child is gone. Will the compensation bring him back to life? Money is not greater than a child.”
According to the family, Avyan died on December 29.
Residents have claimed that 15 people died due to the vomiting-diarrhoea outbreak caused by contaminated drinking water in Bhagirathpura over the last few days. The health department, however, has not confirmed this claim and said only four deaths have occurred.
The government has announced an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh each to the families of the deceased persons.
“The entire family prayed for Ayvan’s birth and made a sacred vow at Hussain Tekri Dargah. My prayers were answered, but I never imagined that the baby would leave us so soon,” she said in tears.
Krishna Sahu said the child was healthy and had put on five kgs.
“He played in his mother’s lap. One day, he suddenly started suffering from diarrhoea and, on a doctor’s advice, we started with medicines at home. His condition, however, worsened, and he was taken to a hospital, where doctors declared him dead,” she said.
Due to insufficient breast milk, the infant was fed packaged milk and milk powder mixed with water from the municipal tap, she said.
Sahu alleged that the water was contaminated and proved fatal for the child.
Anita Sen, a neighbour, said, “I have a month-old girl, a four-year-old and a 10-year-old in my house. Now the government should ensure that no mother is robbed of her child due to contaminated water.”
More than 1,400 people have been affected by vomiting and diarrhoea in Bhagirathpura over the past nine days.
According to the health department, 272 patients were admitted to hospitals in the area till Thursday, of whom 71 have been discharged.
At least 32 patients currently hospitalised are undergoing treatment in intensive care units, it was stated.
Informed of 10 deaths: Mayor
Indore Mayor Pushyamitra Bhargava on Friday said he has received information about 10 deaths due to a diarrhoea outbreak caused by contaminated water in the Bhagirathpura area of the city.
“According to health department data, four people have died due to the diarrhoea outbreak in Bhagirathpura. However, I have received information about 10 deaths due to this outbreak,” Bhargava said.
To a question about suspected cholera spread in the area based on preliminary test reports of drinking water samples collected from Bhagirathpura, the mayor said only the health department could provide information on the matter.
Chief Medical and Health Officer (CMHO) Dr Madhav Prasad Hasani said on Thursday that laboratory test reports from a city medical college had confirmed that the drinking water from the locality was contaminated due to a leakage in a pipeline.
The CMHO, however, did not share the detailed findings of the report. Administrative officials have also been avoiding giving clear information about it.
Officials said a leakage was found in the main drinking water supply pipeline near a police outpost in Bhagirathpura, at a spot over which a toilet has been constructed. They claimed the leakage led to contamination of the water supply. (PTI)
