BRS MP urges Centre to treat rising cancer burden as national priority

BRS Rajya Sabha MP B. Parthasaradhi Reddy urged the Centre to treat the rising cancer burden as a national priority and launch mass screening programmes, while another BRS MP demanded a ban on the herbicide Paraquat Dichloride citing health risks.

New Delhi: BRS Rajya Sabha member B Parthasaradhi Reddy on Thursday urged the government to treat growing cancer-related issues as a national priority and take measures to deal with the matter, which is silently becoming a major public health emergency.

Expressing concern over the growing cancer crisis in the country during the Zero Hour in the House, he said the number of cancer cases in India is rising sharply every year due to late detection, lack of routine screening, and low level of awareness among the masses.

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“I rise to draw the urgent attention of the government to the rapidly growing cancer-related issues in the country, which is silently becoming a major public health emergency,” Reddy said.

Amid a rapidly rising number of patients with cancer diseases across India, there is an urgent need for more medical, surgical and radiation oncologists, he said.

“Most of the advanced centres are located in cities like Delhi, Bombay, and Hyderabad, and cancer-related patients, especially from rural parts of India, are constrained to travel long distances for the treatment,” he said.

He further said millions of families, particularly the average and middle-income groups, are being pushed into financial distress because of the extremely high cost of treating cancer-related diseases.

To address the issue, the BRS member asked the government to ensure accessibility and affordability of all life-saving oncology drugs, launch a national mass cancer screening mission, and design a policy to support and encourage not-for-profit hospitals by way of providing grants-in-aid for costly surgical and diagnostic equipment.

“I, therefore, request the government to treat this issue as a national priority and take immediate action in this regard, sir. Nip the evil in the bud,” Reddy said.

Another BRS member, KR Suresh Reddy, demanded a ban on herbicide Paraquat Dichloride due to serious health and environmental risks.

He said this herbicide, used for weed control, poisons soil, water, and air, and adversely affects the farming community.

Paraquat Dichloride is easily available across all the pesticide stores in our country, including online platforms, he added.

It is reported that there are 100 suicide deaths in Telangana alone and almost 1,000 suicide deaths in India every month by consuming Paraquat Dichloride, the BRS MP said while demanding a ban on it.