Surge in diarrhoea cases among residents in North Bengaluru, contamination in rainwater tank suspected

Bengaluru: Residents of Purva Palm Beach in Kyalasanahalli, north Bengaluru, have reported a surge in vomiting and diarrhoea cases, allegedly due to contaminated water from rainwater harvesting tanks.

The 15-tower complex, home to over 3,500 residents, relies on three 1.5-lakh-litre rainwater tanks and water tankers, as it lacks borewells.

Residents said these tanks, filled with mud and insects, have not been cleaned.

Ravi P, a resident, said heavy rains two Saturdays ago led to a spike in illnesses by the following week. "My wife started vomiting last Wednesday, and my daughter fell sick on Friday," he said, adding that the terraces of the towers — from where rainwater flows down to the three tanks — have also not been cleaned.

Another resident, Arinjoy (@ArinjoyGhosh10), claimed at least 70 to 80 cases have been reported and that water from these tanks flows directly into the potable supply.

A screenshot he shared from another resident, Jaideep M, revealed his mother was hospitalised with a severe gastrointestinal infection caused by Enteroaggregative E. coli and Rotavirus A.

On Monday night, another resident reported that his two-year-old daughter suffered severe diarrhoea, which led to a seizure.

"The tanks haven’t been cleaned since the last monsoon. The association should have done it before the rains," said a resident who also fell sick.

A BBMP health team visited the premises on last Friday and took four samples. However, they reportedly deemed one visibly contaminated tank too obvious to require sampling.

Residents claim the apartment association has discouraged them from speaking out.

No similar issues have been reported in neighbouring communities.

Water samples collected 

In a written response to DH, Krishna Kumar, president of the owners' association, said they had collected two rounds of water samples from apartments, tanks, and tankers for testing, while BBMP officials had conducted their own sampling.

"Results of these tests are awaited," he said, adding that it would be "premature" to speculate on the cause of the health issues.

Kumar noted that the current board took charge on March 1 without a scheduled tank-cleaning handover.

"We are currently reviewing available records from previous boards of managers to determine when the tank cleaning was last performed, and are committed to address gaps, if any," he said.

The association has issued five advisories to residents and plans to dispose of stored water, followed by deep cleaning and disinfection of all tanks.