Nellupuram is only a stone’s throw from the HAL airport, but is way behind from many localities of the City when it comes to basic amenities. With nearly 700 houses in the locality, the drinking water supplied here is still not hygienic or safe.

7-year-old Pooja, died of gastroenteritis on Thursday in the locality. According to Bangalore East taluk health officer, Dr Ramadev, contaminated water supplied in the area is the reason for the girl’s death.

“More than 30 people have been affected by water-borne diseases in the locality. Health department officials have sent samples of water to Public Health Institute for tests,” he said.

The department has set up a health check-up unit in the Government Primary School in the locality. The staff treated 18 people suffering from diarrhoea and four cases of gastroenteritis on Thursday.

Emergency check-up

“We are visiting every house in the locality to identify patients. Emergency health check-up unit will work round the clock. The public have also been provided with halogen tablets to purify drinking water,” he said.

Pooja’s mother Devi held BBMP and BWSSB responsible for her daughter’s death. “We get non-potable water. Water pipes have been drawn along the drainage canal. There is every chance of  drain water mixing with drinking water,” she said.

Pooja was staying with her grandparents in Krishnagiri in Tamil Nadu. She came on Thursday morning to see her younger brother Ram, who was suffering from diarrhoea, but died from the disease on the same day.

BBMP has asked the public not to use water supplied to the locality for drinking purpose till test results of samples are received. BBMP Mahadevpura zone Health Inspector S Meenakshi said that the Palike has made arrangements for supply of purified water to the residents.

However when Deccan Herald visited the area on Friday, many people in the locality were seen fetching water from public taps.

Cauvery water

Cauvery water is supplied to the residents of this locality only once in seven days. During the other days, borewell sunk next to a drainage canal meets their demand for drinking water.

Guruvaiah, a resident, said, “How can we expect potable water from a borewell sunk next to the drainage. There is no facility to purify the water and you can see that water pipes patched up in many places pass through drainage water. We have demanded several times that the pipes should be separated from drain water. But no one listened to us.”

Irregular supply

He also alleged that even borewell water is not supplied regularly. “If an entire family takes a bath on the same day we may not have water for the next day as the supply is irregular.”

Another resident of the locality Vijay added, “It is normal for us to take bath only once in a week. Children often fall sick because of the this reason.”