A Konduru (Krishna): The victims of kidney ailments of various villages in A Konduru mandal staged a protest before the mandal revenue office here on Monday, appealing to the authorities to save them from death and help them to improve their health condition.

The victims decried the indifference of the State government stating that they had been raising their voice for help for the last three years. “We are not provided with any treatment or financial help for conducting funeral of the deceased persons,” they lamented.

The kidney patients said that every one of them had been spending nearly Rs 15,000 per month on medicine and dialysis, but the government was not responding to help them.

At least they should be provided with free medicine.’

Kidney patients, who are mostly Girijans, said that they were compelled to consume fluoride water for the last several decades since they were not supplied with water from Krishna River.

Various people’s organisations and political parties including the CPI (M) expressed solidarity to the protests by the Girijans at the Tahsildar office.

CPM leader Ch Babu Rao deplored that the YSRCP government was not recognising the severity of the kidney ailments. He said that the liquor is available easily in the State but not drinking water. The government which claims to be a welfare government is not providing minimum medical care to the people, he said.

The State and the Central governments were boasting of Arogyasri and Ayushman Bharat schemes but not providing free medicine to the kidney patients. The poor Girijans are selling their properties for treatment but the government is still in deep slumber.

YSRCP MLA from Tiruvuru had no time to console the victims of kidney ailments and the district ministers do not come to visit these villages, he alleged.

Babu Rao demanded Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy to respond during the Assembly session and announce a plan with funds for saving the kidney patients of A Konduru which had become another Uddanam.

Since the problem persists in 15 mandals in the district, the government should establish a dialysis centre and 100-bed kidney hospital at A Konduru.

He demanded nutritious food for patients and boys and girls, cereals and other essential commodities through ration depots. If the government did not take any action by the end of March, a massive agitation would be launched to lay siege to all the tahsildar offices, he warned.