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 that handpumps in the affected areas were supplying yellow-coloured water, the news agency reported. It added that children and women in the area had not received nutritious food on time for months.The petitioner also alleged that the area was plagued by poor sanitation and claimed that these conditions were causing infections and contributing to the continued deaths of children.The report said that the administration took action only after more than 30 deaths, following which the number of hospital beds was increased and health, sanitation and cleanliness in the area were improved, PTI reported.The case will next be heard on September 18.Edited by Neerad Pandharipande.Also read:For months, Adivasi children in Madhya Pradesh kept dying. The government woke up too lateBehind deaths of Adivasi children in Balaghat: appalling vaccination levels, widespread hunger