HC seeks Madhya Pradesh’s response on plea about deaths of tribal children in Balaghat

The Madhya Pradesh High Court on Wednesday sought a response from the state government on a public interest litigation about the deaths of more than 30 children in Balaghat district seemingly due to infectious diseases, PTI reported.

The petition was filed by Anshul Tiwari, a resident of Narsinghpur district, based on newspaper reports. The plea alleged that children were not receiving adequate medical care, with around 400 children being treated in a hospital that has only 50 beds.

Scroll reported on September 4 that at least 25 children from the Baiga and Gond tribes have died since May in Balaghat. For two months, the suspected measles-malaria outbreak went undetected because of the complete absence of a healthcare system in the remote Adivasi habitation.

A division bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Vivek Rusia and Justice Pradeep Mittal has issued notices to the State Health Department, Women and Child Development Department, the Balaghat collector and others.

During the hearing last week, the court had observed that filing a PIL solely based on newspaper reports was not appropriate, PTI reported. It had asked the petitioner to visit the affected areas, verify the facts and submit a report.

On Wednesday, the petitioner submitted a report following his visit to the affected areas in Balaghat.

In the report, the petitioner alleged...

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