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Fluoride Mitigation Centre not likely soon
Poor communication between the central and state governments has resulted in the inordinate delay in establishing the prestigious Regional Fluoride Mitigation and Research Centre (RFMRC) in the city, making the wait for lakhs of fluoride patients more painful.
Hyderabad: Poor communication between the central and state governments has resulted in the inordinate delay in establishing the prestigious Regional Fluoride Mitigation and Research Centre (RFMRC) in the city, making the wait for lakhs of fluoride patients more painful.
The RFMRC was proposed by the Ministry of Rural Development in 2006 to extend exceptional treatment facilities to fluoride-affected patients in Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Orissa, Chhattisgarh, Pondicherry, Goa, Assam, Madhya Pradesh and West Bengal.
The ministry had proposed the project at a cost of nearly Rs 10 crore. As per the plan, a 100-bed hospital was supposed to be established with nearly 130 doctors (including specialized orthopedic surgeons) and facilitating staff for the benefit of fluoride-affected patients. A sophisticated mobile laboratory was also on cards as part of the project to carry out tests on water, soil and human body.
Scientists of National Institute of Nutrition (NIN), Hyderabad, nodal agency in execution of the project, observed that there was no step forward in the issue since the last official meeting held at Nagpur in January 2014.
Nalgonda district fluoride monitoring officer Sudheer Babu said that the district administration has been requesting the state government to follow-up the project on a priority. "We are requesting the state government and NIN to take up the matter with the Centre, but there is no positive response from either of them," he said.
Fluorosis Vimukti Porata Samiti (FVPS) of Telangana, an NGO, which has been working on the issue over the past few decades, has brought to light numerous case studies of citizens suffering from different kinds of problems to pressurise the state government to make an immediate move on the project, which remains unattended after the formation of the Telangana State.
They also brought to the fore the various case studies of women suffering from reproductive problems, children with severe enamel damages and aged citizens with incurable bone ailments, etc. Case studies done by the organization over the past decade indicate that nearly half of the habitations in Nalgonda district and its surrounding areas were affected by fluoride-related diseases.
Social activist and FVPS convener K Subash said that the Telangana government is not showing interest in the follow-up of the project after the formation of the State. "Despite the fact that we cleared all the initial processes, works pertaining to construction of RFMRC are yet to begin," he said.
By: G Bharat Krishna
