AHMEDABAD/BENGALURU: After sewage contamination of drinking water caused 10 deaths in Indore, Gandhinagar and Bengaluru are also grappling with a similar public health scare.While a sudden surge in typhoid cases has been reported in several localities of Gandhinagar, residents of KSFC Layout in Bengaluru’s Lingarajapuram area have been reporting symptoms like gastrointestinal pain, vomiting and diarrhoea over the past few months, with some requiring hospitalisation. Sewage leak into drinking water pipelines has triggered the crisis in these two cities, too.In Gandhinagar, health officials have confirmed 70 active typhoid cases concentrated in sectors 24, 26, 28 and Adiwada, with contaminated water blamed for the outbreak.At least seven leaks have been identified in the pipeline network, causing sewage to mix with drinking water supply. The civil hospital has also opened a 30-bed paediatric ward to handle the influx of children coming with high fever and gastrointestinal symptoms. Doctors report a steady stream of young patients. However, hospital sources said none of the patients are in a serious condition.The crisis comes despite a Rs 257-crore investment in a 24×7 water supply project. Engineering officials concede that pipelines were laid close to sewer lines. “When high pressure water began flowing, weak pipes developed leaks,” a senior roads and buildings department official explained.A district collectorate officer said, “Once there is leakage and the sewer line is nearby, contamination becomes inevitable. Municipal commissioner JN Vaghela said leakages are being plugged and fresh water samples show improvement. We are hopeful of containing the outbreak in a day or two with super chlorination,” he said.In Bengaluru, at least 30-40 households have been forced to switch to private water sources for over a week. Although many residents had been falling ill frequently, the scale of water contamination became evident only this week, when they noticed foul-smelling, frothy water and found thick layers of dark sewage silt while cleaning underground sumps.Following multiple complaints, Bengaluru water supply and sewerage board officials inspected the area on Friday and Saturday and confirmed that sewage had mixed with the potable water pipeline at an unidentified point. However, residents alleged that officials are yet to pinpoint the exact breach and are digging up multiple locations in a trial-and-error effort to trace the fault.
