The administration finally broke its deep slumber over the mysterious fever spreading in Ghazipur. Health Minister Brajesh Pathak summoned a report and 11 village secretaries were punished.

Ghazipur. In about a dozen villages of Ghazipur district of UP, children are becoming mentally and physically disabled due to mysterious fever, but till now the district administration and government officials were sleeping in Kumbhakarna’s sleep. While Sushil Yadav, a resident of Bahadipur village, has continuously filed several complaints for the last five years to the District Magistrate of Ghazipur, Superintendent of Police, Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board, Central Pollution Control Board, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Central Ground Water Board, Water Resources Department, UP Chief Minister’s complaint portal to get the pollution spreading from the factory and groundwater investigated by experts. Whereas in the name of action, only once in 2021 the Pollution Control Board had closed the factory for two months.

In 2021, the Pollution Control Board had closed the factory for just two months. 

It’s worth noting that the failure of the entire system is being exposed in the case of children and adolescents becoming physically and mentally disabled after a mysterious fever. Villagers allege that this is due to pollution from a large factory located there. It’s not as if the administration was unaware of this. In 2021, the Pollution Control Board closed the Sukhbir Agro and Energy Private Limited factory in Bahadurpur village, Ghazipur, for just two months, but it later reopened. This year, the CO of Bhudkuda clearly stated in his report to the Superintendent of Police that the smoke and ash emanating from the factory had disrupted the lives of people living within a 10-kilometer radius, but this report was also shelved. Currently, the smoke from the factory is so intense that a layer of black ash accumulates on the roofs of nearby houses.

Villagers in a dozen villages, including Bahadipur, Fatehullahpur, Hariharpur, Dharikala, Roop Taradih, Rathouli, Khuthan Bhaurahara, and Budhanpur, all located in the Manihar, Sadar, and Devkali blocks of Ghazipur district, allege that air and water pollution from the factory is causing physical and mental disabilities for children and adolescents. All of these villages are within a 10-kilometer radius of the factory.

UP Deputy Chief Minister and Health Minister Brajesh Pathak summoned a report from the Principal Secretary and Director General of Medical Health.

Taking a serious view of the mysterious fever in about a dozen villages in Ghazipur district, UP’s Deputy Chief Minister and Health Minister Brajesh Pathak has summoned a report from the Principal Secretary and Director General of Medical Health. Furthermore, on Thursday, doctors from the Health Department set up camps in 11 villages affected by this fever. Ten disabled people were taken to the Medical College and Trauma Center for examination. ECGs were performed on the children, and samples were taken for pathology tests. The district administration, taking an active role in this matter, has begun collecting data on the disabled patients and their illnesses. Instructions have also been given to issue Ayushman cards for these families.

11 village secretaries were punished

After the negligence was exposed, the District Panchayat Raj Officer issued notices to 11 village secretaries, asking why they didn’t conduct a survey of the affected villages. The District Panchayat Raj Officer asked why they didn’t inform the authorities about the matter. Why didn’t the victims receive the benefits of central and state government schemes? Meanwhile, District Magistrate Avinash Kumar has suspended the secretaries of the concerned villages for negligence.

In this matter, Director General of Medical Health, Dr. RPS Suman, stated that the CMO has been instructed to collect complete details of each patient and submit a report. He added that necessary action will be taken against those responsible once the report is received.