The Chhattisgarh High Court granted liberty to the person aggrieved to approach the appropriate authority, if potable water is found contaminated.
The Division Bench of Chief Justice Ramesh Sinha and Justice Rakesh Mohan Pandey disposed of a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed seeking following reliefs:-
“10.(i) Pass an order directing the respondents to identify infected persons in the affected areas, particularly pregnant women and provide immediate medical treatment free of cost;
10.(ii) Pass an order directing the respondents to ensure supply of essential drugs at public health facilities to treat the disease;
10.(iii) Pass an order directing the respondents to create awareness about the disease regarding chlorination, boiling water, pregnant women being a high-risk group.
10.(iv) Pass an order directing the respondents to put in place a water monitoring system in every municipal corporation, municipality, nagar panchayat, gram panchayat in the state to chek water contamination.
10.(v) Pass an order directing the respondents to identify the areas where the epidemic has spread on the basis of reported Hepatitis cases in public and private health facilities, and take immediate remedial measures to provide safe drinking water through infrastructural changes in water supply system, availability of public latrines, sewage system and immediate chlorination of water at source, transport and storage.
10.(vi) Pass an order directing the respondents that till the infrastructural changes are made they ensure chlorination of drinking water in the identified areas at source, transport, storage.
10.(vii) Pass an order directing the respondents to produce before the Hon’ble Court documents pertaining to the measures taken by them, and the funds earmarked for providing safe and adequate drinking water in the rural and urban areas of Chhattisgarh in the past and present financial year.
10.(viii) Pass an order appointing a Special Committee to investigate the lapse that led to the outbreak of the epidemic and make recommendations for changes in the water supply and sewage infrastructure .
10.(ix) Pass an order directing criminal and disciplinary action against responsible official for their failure to provide safe drinking water, and causing spread of the epidemic.
10.(x) Pass an order directing the respondents to identify the number of persons who have died due to the epidemic and grant compensation to the tune of Rupees Twenty Lakh per death to the families.
10.(xi) Pass an order directing the respondents to identify the persons infected and grant compensation to the tune of Rupees Five lakh per affected person.
10.(xii) Pass any other order the Hon’ble Court may deem fit in the interest of justice.”
The counsel for the petitioner has pointed out that some people have also lost their lives because of contaminated water found in the concerned city, therefore, a present PIL has been filed.
The Counsel for Municipal Corporation, Raipur in his return has categorically stated that from 09.01.2020 to 30.04.2020, 21 samples were collected and put to rigorous test on 12 different parameters in the Water Analysis Laboratory of Municipal Corporation, Raipur and it was found that E.Coli was not present and the water was potable in nature.
Likewise, it is also stated that 346 samples from January 2020 to April, 2020 were sent to District Water Testing Laboratory of Public Health Engineering Department, Raipur which is a National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratory approved all the test and it was revealed that drinking water being supplied by the Municipal Corporation, Raipur is pure and safe. It is also stated that 26 samples of water were sent to the Department of Microbiology, Pt. Jawahar Lal Nehru Medical College, Raipur and on a test for bacteriological culture, it was found that there was no growth of bacteria. Thus, the learned counsel for respondent No. 6 would submit that the grievance of the petitioner has been redressed.
Therefore, the Court disposed of the PIL.