One dead, several hospitalised after drinking contaminated water in Karnataka

One person died and several others have been hospitalised after drinking contaminated water in a village in Belagavi district, Karnataka Irrigation Minister Govind Karjol said on Thursday. The state government has announced an ex-gratia of Rs 10 lakh to the next of kin of the deceased, the minister told reporters.

"On Wednesday in Mudenur village in Ramdurg Taluk of Belagavi, some people were hospitalised after drinking contaminated water and among them, a person named Shivappa Belleri died," Karjol said. The minister appealed to the villagers to use water from the Reverse Osmosis (a water purification process) unit installed by the state government in the village.

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Karjol also asked people to remove dump yards around the borewells, indicating that the contamination of groundwater was due to the seepage of leachate. "We are providing safe piped drinking water under the 'Jal Jeevan' Mission. Almost 80 per cent of the work is now over. In a month, every house in the village will get pure drinking water," the minister said.