DADU, Aug 29: Ten people, most of them children, have died after consuming contaminated water of the Manchhar Lake during the past seven days. This was revealed in a survey conducted by this correspondent.

A large number of women and children of Miani Mallah, Shaikh Mallah, Chandni Mallah, Parehari Mallah, Rodhnani Baloch, Rasool Bux Rodhnani, Dost Mohammad Rodhnani, Gath Baloch and Girkan villages, located around the lake, are suffering from infections like gastroenteritis, tuberculosis and skin diseases.

The condition of fishermen is turning worse but medical facilities and safe drinking water are not being provided to them. Twenty-month old Shairal, 9 months old Shahzado and Abdullah died in the Maula Bux Mallah village on Sunday.

Two years old Hasina and 4 months old Ishaq died in the Chandni Mallah village on Friday. Basran, 50, resident of the Chandni Mallah village, died on Thursday. Eleven months old Liaquat of Bund Manchhar died on Wednesday.

Munir, 6, and Sakina, 8, both residents of Manchhar Lake zero point area, died six days back while Sardar, 4, died seven days back. An affected woman of the Maula Bux Mallah village, Lalee Khatoon, said her son, Shahzado, died after consuming contaminated water of the lake.

She said her son had been suffering from gastroenteritis for 15 days but she had no money to arrange transport and take him to hospital for treatment. Another woman, Jannat, said Hassan Shairal, who died of gastroenteritis, was ill for 30 days.

She said about 80 children in her village were infected with different diseases, 11 of whom were in critical condition. Manchhar Bachayo Ittehad general-secretary Maula Bux Mallah said casualties were being reported in the lake area.

He refuted claims of irrigation officials and the district administration that the lake water was fit for human consumption. He said health department officials were not making public figures of deaths caused by consumption of polluted water as this would show their negligence.

Mr Mallah claimed that about 1,000 persons in a population of 10,000 were infected with different water-borne diseases in 10 Manchhar villages. He said if the supply of water of the Main Nara Valley Drain into the Manchhar Lake was not stopped, 251,000 acres of land in 10 dehs would be rendered uncultivable.

He said fishermen and affected families had complained to the DCO during his visit to the area that the use of contaminated water was causing deaths of people but the health department was not providing residents with medical facilities.

Mr Mallah claimed that the DCO had assured that medical camps would be set up within 12 hours but no camp had been established as yet. Bachai of the Chandni Mallah village complained that elected representatives of the area were not paying attention to the crisis.

The executive engineer, southern irrigation division, Dadu, Habibullah Kabooro, said Manchhar water was not fit for drinking but it could be used for irrigation. He said presently, 65,000 acres of land were being cultivated onlake water. He said this water was also not dangerous for fish species.

He said water level in the lake was 108.15 feet, hence water up to two feet could be supplied to farmers from the lake. About deaths reportedly caused by consumption of lake water, he said if this had happened it was a matter of the health department. However, he claimed, deaths had been reported in villages where people were not using water of the lake but of a scheme of sweet water.

The Dadu district administration, in a handout, confirmed the deaths of three people in Manchhar area due to use of polluted water during the last 24 hours. The handout was issued by the district information officer on Saturday evening after a visit of the DCO to the lake.

PPI ADDS: Villagers told a DCO-led team that visited the Manchhar Lake and collected samples of its water that seven people had died after using poisonous water of the lake in the Maula Bux Mallah village.