Distribution of a herbal preparation made by Ayurveda practitioner B. Anandaiah was conducted at a brisk pace across south coastal Andhra Pradesh on Tuesday.
The herbal preparation from Krishnapatnam, it is claimed, boosts one’s immunity and helps keep COVID-19 at bay. Huge crowds had flocked to the village to lay their hands on it before the government put a halt on its distribution till the Centre gave its green light to the concoction after conducting several checks.
After the High Court’s intervention in the matter, the State government permitted four variants of the preparation to be distributed among the public. An eye-drop variant, however, was not allowed clearance as experts were yet to fully study its safety.
A network of volunteers completed distribution of the herbal preparation free of cost to people in Sarvepalli Assembly segment, said YSRCP Nellore district unit president Kakani Govardhan Reddy. The preparation was distributed in different parts of Nellore city also by volunteers.
In Ongole, people waited in long queues to get at least a few packets of the mixture, including the immunity booster variant, at a medical camp organised amid tight security by YSRCP MP Magunta Srinivasulu Reddy along with his son M. Raghava Reddy. The same would be distributed across Ongole Lok Sabha constituency in order to make it ‘corona-free’, Mr. Raghava Reddy said.
“We planned to provide Mr. Anandaiah’s preparation to 20 lakh people in Prakasam district,” Mr. Raghava Reddy added while overseeing the arrangements made for distribution at the PVR Municipal Boys High School grounds by the MP’s followers to ensure that COVID-19 safety protocols were being followed. A large number of people waiting in the queues returned disappointed as only 5,000 packets were made available from Krishnapatnam.
Simultaneously, a large number of people flocked to Energy Minister Balineni Srinivasa Reddy’s residence where Ongole Mayor Gangada Sujatha organised distribution of the herbal recipe.
“We were able to distribute close to 5,000 packets on Thursday. More packets will be arranged in the coming days,” YSRCP city president Singaraju Venkat Rao said.
