Gujarat: Desert ships died after drinking water, 25 camels died! Officials started investigation
25 camels died after drinking water in Gujarat’s Bharuch district. A herd of camels drank water from a pond located outside the village, after which they suddenly started dying. The incident is of Kachipura in Wagra taluka. It is being told that the leakage in the crude oil pipeline has poisoned the water and because of this the camels died as soon as they drank the water.
Kachipura is a village with a population of 250 people and about 60 houses. The people of Maldhari community live in the village. Maldhari people are known for animal husbandry activities. They live their life only through camels. There is a problem of water in the village as well and the water that is coming is contaminated. Villagers say that people often fall sick due to contaminated water and many deaths have also taken place.
Rahmanbhai Jat, a 67-year-old resident of the village who has been doing the family profession of camel rearing since 1916, said that the village is facing the crisis of drinking water. “We were getting water tankers from some private suppliers, but it has stopped for the last two months. On Sunday, the villagers were taking the camels to the Chanchvel Lake, 5 km away, for respite from the scorching heat, but when they reached near a pond on the way, the camels started dying one by one.
According to the villagers, 30 camels have died. Out of which 25 bodies have been recovered. Musabhai Ali Kachhi, a local social worker, said that the villagers have repeatedly appealed to the government for adequate supply of drinking water, but no action has been taken so far. Earlier water tankers were coming, this has also been stopped for the last few months.
The authorities have launched an investigation to find out the exact reason why the water was toxic or contaminated. A vigilance team of the Gujarat Pollution Control Board (GPCB) has reached the spot on Monday to conduct a complete investigation. GPCB regional officer in Bharuch, Margi Patel, said that no chemical industry in the vicinity could be identified as a possible source of the pollutant. There is an ONGC well for crude oil pipeline in the area but there have been no reports of leakage from it. Samples have been collected from where the bodies of the camels were found and the cause of death will be known after the postmortem report.”
Dr. Harsha Goswami, a government veterinary officer in Bharuch, confirmed the death of 25 camels, although the exact cause of their death is uncertain. The investigation is on. Till the time of writing the news, the cause of death has not been confirmed.
