The spate of infant deaths stalking the Government SVRR Hospital, Tirupati is assuming political dimensions with the pro and anti-government forces indulging in serious blame game.
During the last one week, even as the death toll increased to 15, the hospital became the ‘must visit’ destination for leaders of political parties. Though ostensibly to console parents of the deceased children, they went hammer and tongs at Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy.
During the critical week when the hospital was in the news for the serial child deaths, no day passed without a political demonstration in front of it. Responding to a call given by TDP president N. Chandrababu Naidu during his visit to the hospital on Monday, district leaders of the party launched an indefinite relay fast in front of the hospital. Senior party leaders like its deputy leader in the House and Nagari MLA G. Muddukrishnama Naidu, his Srikalahasti counterpart B. Gopalakrishna Reddy, Chittoor MP N. Sivaprasad and the Tirupati constituency in-charge Chadalawada Krishnamurthy led the dharna.
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TDP projects
They blamed the Chief Minister and the government for all the mess the State was currently mired in, calling it a serious ‘administrative paralysis’.
They said if at all the SVIMS, its Prana Dana Trust, SP Mahila University, new industries, ring-roads and other facilities have come up in Tirupati- they owed their existence to the TDP and blamed the Congress for doing precious little except reaping the benefits of the schemes initiated by TDP.
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They demanded that the government issue orders to TTD to release the committed Rs. 5 crore grant, bringing paediatric cases also under the Arogyasri net.
PCC joint secretary P. Naveen Kumar Reddy leading the pro-Kiran group lambasted the TDP for trying to politicise the tragedy and listed the steps which the Kiran Kumar government and the Tirupati MP Dr. Chintha Mohan have done for Tirupati in the recent times.