Overview
- Indore bench reprimanded authorities, deemed the city’s drinking water unsafe, and directed Chief Secretary Anurag Jain to appear via video on January 15 with a fresh status report.
- Interim orders require government-funded tanker supplies, immediate stoppage of contaminated sources, and free treatment in government and empanelled private hospitals.
- Preventive steps mandated include NABL lab testing across the network, replacing old pipelines where sewer lines run parallel, installing online monitoring, enforcing chlorination, and drafting a long-term water safety plan.
- The court sought files on past pipeline tenders and MP Pollution Control Board findings from 2017–18 as it weighs civil and criminal liability for lapses.
- Laboratory reports cited fecal contamination including E. coli and fecal coliform, with some outlets reporting Vibrio cholerae and salmonella; officials logged 38 new cases and about 110 patients under care as death counts remain disputed.