What does Indore's water tragedy remind the country of?

Google for the cleanest city in India, the answer emerging within seconds is Indore in Madhya Pradesh. The city won the title not once or twice but eight times in a row in the world's largest cleanliness survey 'Swachh Survekshan' organized since 2016 under the supervision of the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs. 'Madhyamam' ran an editorial in praise of the city’s achievement alongside reminding Kerala of its ‘hygiene habits’. The country’s industrial capital gained the distinction for its scientific waste management systems that never leaves a single speck of waste on its streets and its people who have made waste disposal a culture. The systems were so efficient that there was no requirement of dustbins in the cities. However, reports coming from the city over the past few days nullify these achievements. At least 17 people, including infants and the elderly, died from poisoning caused by toilet waste mixed with drinking water supplied by the municipality.

Indore became the country's first 'Water+' city, thanks to its specialty of collecting and sorting waste at the doorstep, processing them into fertilizer and fuel, and releasing wastewater only after complete treatment. Thus, a belief that the city was safe from the threat of water-borne diseases was prevalent. It is here several people are struggling from diarrhea, vomiting and jaundice without even having space in the hospital verandahs. Weeks ago, locals had informed the authorities that the water supplied in the Bhagirathpura area, where the poor and middle class live, was foul-smelling and tasteless. But no one paid any attention to it. The first case of infection was reported on December 21, followed by the first death on December 31. Only after the outbreak of diarrhea and deaths did the authorities begin the probe. The initial conclusion was that mixing of sewage from a septic tank, built for a police outpost, in a pipe carrying drinking water from the Narmada River. The police outpost built without following rules and regulation in the city, where bulldozing houses and buildings in the name of justice and under the guise of urban development has been a routine, took the lives of a number of innocent people. Kailash Vijayvargiya, the former mayor of Indore who is notorious for his communal, hateful and misogynistic speeches, is the state's urban development minister. The minister responded in his characteristic foul language to the questions by journalists about the steps the government is taking in the wake of the high death toll and compensation for the families of the victims.

The tragedy in Indore should be an eye-opener for all for Indian cities. Water conservationist and Magsaysay Award winner Dr. Rajendra Singh wondered how flawed the water supply systems in other cities could be if such a water disaster occurred in the Swachhta Nagar. The authenticity and credibility of the urban sanitation survey, elections and Water Plus certification are now under question. The titles issued without ensuring the safety and healthy life of people are fake and lie. Billions of rupees including loans from the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank have been allocated for ‘developing’ and ‘sanitizing’ Indian cities. The central government has given a whopping Rs 1074 crore to Indore under the Amrit Nagar scheme. It is about time people questioned whether all this money has been properly utilized or how many crores has been siphoned off. This incident warns Kerala, where bursting of drinking water pipes and spread of waterborne diseases are a daily occurrence, to be on constant alert.