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Contaminated water leaves 15 sick in Zirakpur’s Gazipur
Gazipur residents alleged that the neighbourhood’s supply of drinking water, which was maintained by the water supply and sanitation department, was contaminated by sewer lines
As many as 15 people, including seven children, fell ill after consuming contaminated water in Gazipur village of Zirakpur on Sunday.
The seven children were admitted to Government Medical College and Hospital, Sector 32 (GMCH), Chandigarh; Civil Hospital, Phase 6, Mohali; and others in Panchkula and Ambala.
The residents alleged that the neighbourhood’s supply of drinking water, which was maintained by the water supply and sanitation department, was contaminated by sewer lines
Abhishek Saini, a resident of Gazipur, said after drinking water on Sunday, children complained of vomiting and diarrhoea.
Gurdeep Singh, another resident, said most of the residents complained of stomach ache due to consumption of contaminated water.
Private company damaged pipes while digging: SDE
Speaking on the issue, water supply department’s sub-divisional engineer (SDE) Karamjeet Singh said a private telecom company dug up the area to lay wires a few days ago and damaged the water pipes, which resulted in sewage mixing with drinking water.
He added that the department had plugged the leakages and stopped the supply to the affected area.
He further said a complaint will be lodged with the police, as the company proceeded without getting requisite permissions from authorities concerned.
Senior medical officer (SMO), Dhakoli, Pommy Chatrath, meanwhile, said they had received no information about the issue, but will soon be sending a team to the village.
Notably, the supply of contaminated water has been a longstanding problem in Zirakpur. In August last year, a cholera outbreak in the Baltana area, where a three-year-old girl and 30-year-old man succumbed to the infection, saw more than 400 cases being reported from three localities: Ekta Vihar, Ravindra Enclave and Harmilapur.
Similarly, in July last year, a nine-year-old boy died and around 400 people got infected due to a cholera outbreak in Abheypur and Budhanpur villages in the neighbouring Panchkula district.
