Though the Central government has sanctioned Rs. 10 crore to begin the proposed Regional Fluoride Mitigation and Research Centre (RFMRC) in the district, the State government has not taken any initiative to start the institute.
Since the Union Ministry for Drinking Water and Sanitation has handed over the execution of the project to the National Institute of Nutrition in co-ordination with the State government and district administration, Arjun L. Kandhare, Deputy Director, NIN pursued the district administration to allot eight acres land. The NIN officials have been showing interest in starting the RFMRC at a temporary building near Gudimalkapur or Choutuppal, but the government has turned a cold shoulder to the project.
The 100-crore project would house a 100-bed hospital for fluorosis victims in addition to a research centre to study the fluoride content in water and its impact on humans.
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Fluorosis Vimukthi Porata Samithi (FVPS) convener Kanchukatla Subhash appealed to the State government to immediately start the RFMRC at a temporary building besides completing the recruitment of scientists and doctors in co-ordination with respective the Union Ministry.
Jala Sadhana Samithi founder Dusharla Satyanarayana said almost all the 3,387 villages in the district were affected by fluoride, but the government was trying to minimise the impact. Since the RFMRC is meant for ten States, the activists fear that the Centre may shift the project to other States due to disinterest by the Telangana government. According to a recent survey conducted by the Union Health and Family Welfare Department, Nalgonda has the highest number of fluoride-affected villages in the country.