BHOPAL: Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) convenor Abhijit Dipke on Saturday visited tribal villages in Madhya Pradesh’s Balaghat district to meet families who lost their children to infectious diseases and demanded accountability from the administration.
Accompanied by local youths, Dipke visited Adori, Korka and Bondari villages to gather information about healthcare facilities in the affected areas and the circumstances surrounding the deaths.
His visit came days after the Jabalpur bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court sought a response from the state government over the deaths of more than 30 children allegedly due to infectious diseases in the district.
The court issued notices to the state Health Department, Women and Child Development Department, Balaghat collector and other authorities while hearing a public interest litigation (PIL) concerning the deaths.
The PIL alleged inadequate medical treatment for children and claimed that around 400 children were being treated at a hospital having a capacity of only 50 beds.
It further alleged that yellow-coloured water was being drawn from handpumps in the affected areas and that children and women had not received nutritious food on time for several months.
Speaking to reporters, Dipke expressed sympathy with the bereaved families and said his organisation would work to ensure justice for them.
He questioned the administration over what he described as a lack of action despite the authorities acknowledging the number of deaths.
“While the administration has accepted the number of deaths, it has neither fixed responsibility nor taken action against any official,” he said.
“We have come only to fix responsibility and accountability,” Dipke added.
The CJP leader said details collected during his visit would be examined to assess the healthcare situation and circumstances prevailing in the affected tribal villages.