The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News : Residents were complaining from Monday itself

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Wednesday, May 06, 2009
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

Residents were complaining from Monday itself

Recent Water Board report showed no adverse reading in samples

- Photos: Nagara Gopal & G. Krishnaswamy

Civic mess: Drainage water flowing through Bholakpur. (Right) A mother fanning her children with a cardboard as there was a power cut in Gandhi Hospital.

HYDERABAD: The GHMC has opened a control room in a school building in Bholakpur to assist the Medical and Health Department staff in treating local residents round-the-clock.

Special Commissioner M.T. Krishna Babu and Zonal Commissioner P. Bhaskar are personally supervising arrangements along with the health and sanitation staff.

Commissioner S.P. Singh, who visited the area and also consoled the persons hospitalised, told presspersons later in the evening that necessary instructions have been given to coordinate with the Water Board officials and other departments in providing succour to the affected persons.

He felt it was a clear case of contamination of drinking water supply which took an epidemic form and admitted that complaints were received from Monday night onwards from the local residents. The Commissioner was surprised that such an incident occurred when the report submitted by the Water Board in the review meeting held earlier showed no adverse reading in testing of water samples.

“We have even sought testing of water samples from private tankers supplying it to various localities as it is a ripe reason for break of communicable diseases,” he pointed out.

Water Supply and municipal officials are on the job of locating the source of contamination and it could be detected soon.

Mr. Singh revealed that the Water Board had plans to replace the age-old water pipelines in the area but there was no response to the tenders called, twice.

Other than pressing its own Health and Medical staff in the area to also help in manning the health camp set up, Mr. Singh directed Mr. Krishna Babu to ensure that air-coolers and pedestal fans as well as mattresses were supplied to Fever Hospital, where there is a shortage of beds to take in the affected persons. “We have also positioned ambulances to tackle any emergency as the epidemic can spread very fast,” he said.

Majlis chief and MP Asaduddin Owaisi and CPI Member of Parliament P. Madhu met the Commissioner and complained about lax response from the Water Board officials to repeated complaints from the Bholakpur residents for the last one week.

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