RAS question
At least seven people died and more than 40 others fell ill in the Indore water contamination crisis. Which national body took suo motu cognizance of this incident?
Correct answer: (C) National Human Rights Commission (NHRC).
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), India took suo motu cognizance of the Indore water contamination incident in which at least seven people died and more than 40 others fell ill after consuming contaminated water in Bhagirathpura.
Explanation
NHRC is the body linked to the incident because its official press release says it took suo motu cognizance of a media report on deaths and hospitalisations after contaminated water was supplied in Bhagirathpura, Indore. The Commission treated the report as raising serious human-rights concerns and issued a notice to the Chief Secretary of Madhya Pradesh, seeking a detailed report within two weeks. The factual trigger was not a routine pollution-monitoring update or a court order: sewage had mixed with drinking water after leakage in the main pipeline, the National Green Tribunal called the episode a serious governance failure, and the pipeline was 30 years old.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) The Supreme Court of India did not take suo motu cognizance of this incident; NHRC did.
- (B) The Central Pollution Control Board may monitor pollution, but the official press release attributes the suo motu cognizance to NHRC, not CPCB.
- (D) The Central Vigilance Commission deals with corruption-related vigilance matters, while this case was treated as a public-health and human-rights concern by NHRC.
Concept
This tests constitutional and governance institutions, especially the role of statutory human-rights bodies in responding to administrative failure. It recurs in RAS because water, health, accountability and local governance often overlap in current-affairs questions.