Indore (PTI): Conflicting claims over the number of deaths caused by consumption of contaminated water in Indore continued on Thursday, with residents claiming 13 fatalities, a day after Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav put the toll at four, while the city Mayor said seven persons lost life.
Cases of people suffering from diarrhoea and vomiting were first reported in the Bhagirathpura area of the city a week back. Local residents claimed that 13 people, including a six-month-old child, have died so far, while officials said only four deaths have been confirmed.
After visiting the affected area on Wednesday, CM Yadav pegged the death toll at four. Hours later, Indore Mayor Pushyamitra Bhargava confirmed seven deaths.
The confusion over the death toll still continues due to these different numbers.
Officials said a preliminary assessment indicated that drainage water entered the drinking water pipeline due to leakage, triggering the outbreak in Bhagirathpura.
Bhagirathpura falls under the Indore-1 assembly constituency of state Urban Development and Housing Minister Kailash Vijayvargiya.
Talking to reporters, Vijayvargiya said 1,400 to 1,500 people were affected by the outbreak, of whom around 200 were admitted to hospitals.
All the admitted patients were out of danger and were being discharged continuously as their condition improved.
On the varying death figures, Vijayvargiya said, "Administrative officials have informed me that four people have died due to this outbreak, but there is information here (in Bhagirathpura) about eight to nine deaths. We will verify this information and if it is found to be correct, financial assistance will be provided to the families of the deceased as announced by CM Mohan Yadav."
Meanwhile, Additional Chief Secretary Sanjay Dubey visited the Bhagirathpura area along with local officials to review the situation.
Officials said water supply was restored in Bhagirathpura on Thursday after repairing the leakage in the drinking water pipeline, and water samples were collected from households and sent for testing.
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Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
