Former BJP corporator Manjusha Nagpure has slammed the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) and wrote a letter to the health department requesting them to provide free preliminary tests for Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS).

Pune on Wednesday reported 35 suspected fresh cases of Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS), an immunological nerve disorder, taking the count to 59, officials said.

"As the tests for these are very expensive and common people can't afford the financial strain caused by the GBS outbreak. Also, it is being claimed by the activists and the Neurological Society of Pune that the spread of the infection at Sinhgad Road is linked to contaminated food or water," she wrote in the letter.

The hard-hit GBS-affected areas include the suburbs and rural areas including Sinhagad Road, Dhayari, Narhe, Vishrantwadi, Parvati, Kasba, and Kothrud.

In the letter, Manjusha Deepak Nagpure mentioned, "These patients need to be immediately admitted to a big hospital and undergo tests. All these preliminary tests are very expensive. I request you to kindly conduct the tests of GBS-infected patients in Pune city under PMC. And arrangements should be made to treat GBS-affected patients in Pune by PMC only."

Speaking to the Free Press Journal, she also emphasized that the GBS outbreak has occurred because the water supplied to these newly merged villages comes from wells and is raw, not treated by PMC, which might be the reason for the outbreak. She slammed PMC for not providing treated water to these areas and their negligence in addressing the outcry of residents in the affected areas.

Unprecedented outbreak of GBS

As Pune grapples with an unprecedented outbreak of Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS), an immunological nerve disorder linked with contaminated water and food, residents in the affected and nearby areas are blaming the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) for failing to provide access to safe water to the residents.

In addition to residents, the Pune unit of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has also slammed the PMC, while NCP-SP chief Sharad Pawar has appealed for better action.

As per the information, most cases are from areas like Sinhagad Road, Dhayari, Kirkatwadi, and surrounding areas, and the patients are admitted to Dinanath Mangeshkar Hospital, Kashibai Navle Hospital, Poona Hospital, Bharti Hospital, Ankura Hospital, and Sahyadri Hospital.

The spread has been linked to contaminated water or food. The PMC has been inspecting the water and food in the areas where cases have been found to trace the source of the infections.

Notably, several areas near Sinhgad Road, like Dhayari, Kirkatwadi, and Khadakwasla, still don't get sufficient water despite the merger with PMC two years ago. These areas do not receive treated water from PMC and instead receive water from the gram panchayat.

The GBS outbreak in Pune has spread fear among the people, and now these residents are criticizing and blaming the civic body for the outbreak.