‘Officials were 200% responsible’, says Vijayvargiya on Indore water tragedy:Minister admits deaths caused by systemic failure, govt accountable

The deaths of 16 people due to contaminated water in Bhagirathpura, Indore, have raised serious questions about the system. Several people are still undergoing treatment. The government did respond, but the action came too late. When Bhaskar questioned Kailash Vijayvargiya, the local MLA and the state’s Urban Administration Minister, about where the lapse occurred, he said officials were “200 per cent responsible” for the tragedy. The Chief Minister has taken action against the erring officers. Vijayvargiya admitted that this was a systemic failure, for which the government is accountable. He also said that after discussions with the Chief Minister, the compensation for affected families will be increased to Rs 4 lakh. Instructions have been issued to create a special mechanism to prevent such incidents in the future. Read the full conversation below… Question: Why is the govt not confirming the death toll? Answer: We have data for those who reached hospitals through dispensaries, but some people went directly to hospitals. We are verifying those cases. If anyone has died due to this tragedy, they will receive the same facilities as others. There is no distinction in death, but confirmation is essential. Question: By when will these figures be confirmed? Answer: Instructions have been given to officials. The councillor informed me that 14–15 deaths have occurred. We have also directed the Collector and the CMHO to verify and confirm the figures. One issue is that post-mortems were not conducted in some cases. I have asked officials to examine medical records to determine what treatment the patients were undergoing. Question: What has been the biggest failure in this entire incident? Answer: This is a system failure. I have been saying from day one that since we are in government, the accountability lies with us. The Chief Minister had formed a committee, which must have submitted its report, and that is likely why action was taken against officials and new officers were posted. This is clearly a system failure and cannot be denied. Question: Councillors were also involved, but why couldn’t the work begin? Answer: A councillor is a very small public representative. He wrote to the Commissioner and the Mayor, who then invited tenders. If a tender got stuck, the responsibility lies with the officer with whom the file was pending. That officer should be punished, and action has been taken. The government has appointed three new officers as Additional Commissioners. Question: What preparations are being made to prevent such incidents in the future? Answer: Today itself, I instructed the Additional Chief Secretary to prioritise complaints related to contaminated water across Madhya Pradesh. A dedicated helpline number will be set up in Bhopal for complaints and solutions related to contaminated water. Municipalities and corporations receiving such complaints will be required to inform us as well. An officer will be appointed to monitor these complaints and ensure timely resolution. Any such incident is extremely serious, and it is vital that we learn from it. Question: Is an increase in the compensation amount being considered?
Answer: Yes, I had requested the Chief Minister to increase the compensation amount. He has agreed to raise it to Rs 4 lakh.