Thousands of asthmatics administered fish medicine in Hyderabad

According to the Bathini family members, nearly 40,000 people were administered the medicine during the first hour itself. The family has been distributing the fish medicine for almost 163 years in the city now.

Distribution difficult amid chaos
The distribution that started at 11 a.m. resulted in chaos and confusion. Patients who arrived at the ground a day before had to sleep at the venue itself in order to avail the medicine.

People faced a lot of difficulty in locating the queues, and due to the unorganized token system, police had to intervene to control the public.

Even the elderly and handicapped people faced difficulty in locating the separate queues arranged for them. "At the information centre, they asked me to go towards Vanitha College but then the police said that the queue was exclusively meant for women," a patient said.

A. Balakoti, a physically challenged teacher from Brundhavan High School in Nalgonda district, complained, "They should have arranged for more number of sign boards to remove the confusion."

But for the relief of NRIs, the district authorities set up an exclusive counter inside the exhibition society’s office.

Arrangements made for the event
Due to the threat of possible terror attacks in Hyderabad for the last few days, the police was on alert and made all possible arrangements at the exhibition ground. CCTV cameras were also fixed at various places.

Special buses were arranged for both the days, i.e. Monday and Tuesday, till 11 a.m. Police issued various guidelines for parking of vehicles and also imposed traffic control in order to facilitate transport during the distribution of fish medicine.

There was some opposition to the event with members of Bharata Nastika Samajam distributing pamphlets to the arriving patients during the distribution of the fish medicine. The pamphlets said that the medicine was ineffective and could not cure asthma.

The unique fish treatment
The fish treatment uses an ayurvedic concoction which is placed in the mouth of a live fish. Then the patient is made to swallow the live fish.

The medicine provides effect once it reaches the digestive tract. It has to be taken thrice during a period of 45 days after the first dose. Also, the patient has to be on a strict diet control during these 45 days.

Thousands of asthma patients have reportedly benefited from this treatment in Andhra Pradesh.