Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh.
Raj Kiran Bathula / Hyderabad.
A severe diarrhea outbreak in Vijayawada’s New Rajarajeswari Pet has snowballed into a full-scale public health emergency, with over 700 cases reported in just five days, YSRCP alleged. The YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) has squarely blamed the coalition government’s “criminal negligence” for the crisis, alleging that citizens are left without basic medical care or safe drinking water.
Despite the rising toll, contaminated water continues to be supplied to households. Families are being forced into private hospitals, spending lakhs of rupees and slipping into debt. The government, meanwhile, maintains that only 270 cases have been registered, a claim strongly refuted by YSRCP fact-finding teams.
Acting on the instructions of Party President Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, a delegation of senior YSRCP leaders including NTR district president Devinenni Avinash, Dr. Gajjala Sudheer Bhargav Reddy, former MLAs Malladi Vishnu and Mondithok Jaganmohan Rao, Vijayawada Mayor Rayana Bhagyalakshmi, state leader Sheikh Asif, and Student Wing State Working President Ravichandra visited the affected colonies. They inspected health camps, met with patients, and documented shocking lapses in public health measures.
Residents displayed bottles of foul-smelling, muddy water supplied through pipelines. Overflowing drains and unclean tankers some not cleaned for over a year were cited as the root cause of contamination. The majority of victims are children, with several deaths already reported due to fever, vomiting, and diarrhea.
YSRCP leaders reminded that during their tenure, water testing kits were distributed to village secretariats and 40 urban health centers with 5,000 sanitary workers operated effectively, preventing such outbreaks. In contrast, the coalition government has failed to deploy ambulances, pediatric doctors, or proper water testing, the delegation said.
Instead of accepting responsibility, YSRCP alleged, the government has tried to divert blame toward Ganesh immersions and street food vendors, while ministers remained absent and preoccupied with “land deals and commissions” under the banner of Vijayawada Utsav.
Calling the government’s apathy “disgraceful,” YSRCP demanded immediate supply of clean drinking water, free medical aid, sanitation drives, and compensation for affected families. The party warned that if corrective action is not taken, it will escalate the matter to the Governor.
“A Chief Minister who cannot protect citizens from routine diarrhea outbreaks has no moral right to remain in office,” the YSRCP said.
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