Diarrhoea outbreak in Zirakpur village, over 100 report ill

Sewage had leaked into the water supply line, the fault was repaired and clean water supply restored on Sunday

A diarrhoea outbreak in Zirakpur’s Nabha village has left over 100 residents sick over the past two days as sewage leaked into the drinking water supply line. The village falls under the jurisdiction of the Zirakpur municipal council.

Water tankers were deployed in the area to ensure clean drinking water supply to residents. (HT File)

The matter came to light when several residents began falling ill simultaneously. Residents Amanpreet Singh, Gurjant Singh, Sukhwinder Kaur, Bhupinder Kaur, Sunita, and Gurdarshan Singh said the situation worsened two days ago when the number of patients surged rapidly. They complained to municipal officials and even warned of staging a protest if immediate action was not taken.

Following the complaints, the administration launched a probe and found that sewage water had leaked into the drinking water supply line. The fault was identified and repaired on Saturday, and clean water supply was restored by Sunday evening. In the meantime, the health department also organised a medical camp in the village to provide treatment to affected residents.

Derabassi civil hospital senior medical officer (SMO) Dr Dharmendra Singh said the situation has since improved. “Three patients were admitted to Government Medical College and Hospital, Sector-32, Chandigarh, in a critical condition while four others, who were admitted to the Dhakoli community health centre, have been discharged after recovery.”

The SMO added that over 100 cases were reported in all but on Sunday, only 15 fresh cases were detected. “Our teams are conducting door-to-door surveys, bringing patients to health camps, and providing medicines in sufficient quantities. The situation is now largely under control, though camps will continue until the outbreak is fully contained,” he said.

Zirakpur MC executive officer Parvinder Bhatti confirmed the leakage of sewer water into the drinking water line. “The lines have been repaired, and we have already sent fresh water samples for lab testing,” he said.

Mohali deputy commissioner Komal Mittal has directed both health and water supply departments to conduct surveys across the district to identify vulnerable pockets and take preventive measures to avoid similar outbreaks in future.