Water supplied by the Municipal Council (MC), defecation in the open, shallow handpumps and chabeels led to the outbreak of cholera in Mohali village, a probe ordered by Deputy Commissioner P S Mand into the possible reasons behind the epidemic, has reported.

In a two-page fact-finding inquiry report submitted to Mand on Wednesday, a four-member probe panel led by Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) Raghbeer Kaur Khaira, however, failed to find the source of the MC water contamination.  

“Efforts were made to pin-point where the water supplied by MC was contaminated but in the absence of site plans of underground water supply and sewerage pipelines laid in the village, the exact cause and source of contamination could not be ascertained,” the probe panel said. 

As a precautionary measure, however, the underground water supply lines were cleaned to check the supply of contaminated water supply. 

Divulging details of the probe report, SDM Khaira told Newsline that the water samples collected from the MC tap, shallow handpumps and tubewells were found unfit for human consumption with the presence of bacteria being confirmed. 

The members also observed that chabeels held in the village, a day before the outbreak on June 21, could also be responsible for the epidemic as a majority of the patients were reported from areas where these were served. 

Again, the probe panel failed to find the source of water served at the chabeels. 

The panel, comprising Civil Surgeon Dr Avtar Singh, Water Supply and Sanitation department Executive Engineer Inderjeet Singh Kang and MC Executive Officer Amana Kumar Goel, also recommended ban on holding chabeels and use of water for drinking purposes from shallow handpumps and tubewells. 

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