Vijayawada: CPM delegation, led by State Secretariat Member Ch Babu Rao, visited Turakapalem village in Guntur district on Thursday, where more than 50 people reportedly died of unidentified diseases in the past three months. Despite the alarming situation, villagers said the State government has yet to ascertain the cause of the deaths, creating widespread fear and uncertainty.

The delegation, comprising district secretary Y Nethaji, city secretary K Nalinikanth, and senior leader Bhavannarayana, interacted with victims’ families and inspected several localities in the village. They found that residents lack access to safe drinking water, hygienic atmosphere and noted the existence of unauthorised liquor outlets (belt shops) in the area.

Later, the CPM leaders staged a protest in solidarity with the victims, highlighting the plight of the villagers. “Though the government claims to be supplying safe drinking water, people here are forced to consume polluted water,” Babu Rao alleged.

He further stated that according to local accounts, around 100 deaths have occurred in the past one year in Turakapalem, which falls under the constituency of Union Minister Pemmasani Chandrasekhar Rao. Extending solidarity to the affected families, Babu Rao demanded immediate intervention from the government to curb further deaths.

Criticising Minister Nara Lokesh and Health Minister Satya Kumar Yadav for failing to identify the cause of the deaths or ensure clean drinking water, he said it was unfortunate that people’s representatives had not even visited the village.

He also sought the urgent response of Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and Deputy Chief Minister K Pawan Kalyan to address the crisis.