The tell-tale of a village in Andhra Pradesh in India: A cancer zone

The Silent Scourge of Balabhadrapuram: A Village in Crisis: Nestled in Andhra Pradesh’s East Godavari district, Balabhadrapuram is a village of 10,800 souls, its fertile fields yielding paddy, sugarcane, and staples. Named after Balabhadra, the deity of agriculture, it once thrived as a beacon of rural prosperity. Today, it bears a grim moniker: a cancer zone. With a cancer incidence rate nearly triple India’s average, the village is gripped by fear, loss, and an urgent fight for survival.

Official data reports 32 cancer cases, but villagers speak of over 100, some claiming up to 200 recent diagnoses. Breast and cervical cancers are prevalent, alongside throat, lung, and bone cancers. In three years, 19 deaths were recorded, though locals insist 65 lives have been lost.

Sir Arthur Cotton Barrage in Rajahmundry on River Godavari
Picture credits: Wikimedia

Narala Rajeswari, 37, a farm laborer and mother, battles throat cancer, her voice reduced to a whisper, her dreams for her daughters dimming. Tatapudi Musalamma, 63, fights bone cancer alone, haunted by her husband’s death from the same disease. Every lane carries such stories—families torn apart, futures uncertain.

The cause remains a mystery. Villagers point to pollution from nearby industrial units, suspecting contaminated air and groundwater. The Andhra Pradesh Pollution Control Board is testing samples, but results are pending, leaving the community in limbo. Once a lifeline, the village’s wells are now feared as sources of poison. This uncertainty fuels panic, driving young families to flee and collapsing property values. Balabhadrapuram, once vibrant, feels hollow, its people shadowed by stigma and dread.

Yet, hope persists. Botcha Jaya, a survivor, endured surgery and chemotherapy to reclaim her life, inspiring others. The state government has mobilized, deploying mobile screening units and 200 medical personnel, including 50 doctors, for door-to-door checks. Free transport to Homi Bhabha Cancer Hospital in Visakhapatnam offers relief, though the 40 km trek to treatment centers in Rajahmundry or Kakinada burdens impoverished farmers. The Arogyasri scheme, covering families earning below Rs 5 lakh annually, provides free treatment, easing financial strain.

Balabhadrapuram’s crisis is a human tragedy and a call to action. It demands answers—rigorous environmental investigations, accessible healthcare, and efforts to erase cancer’s stigma. The village’s spirit shines in its survivors and caregivers, like Rajeswari’s mother, who tends to her daughter with quiet resolve. This is a community bound by shared roots, fighting to rise above shared pain. As medical teams search for clues and villagers hold fast to hope, Balabhadrapuram stands as a testament to resilience—a village battling to reclaim its future from cancer’s grip.

Citations:

1. The Hindu, “Cancer cases on the rise in Andhra Pradesh village, residents in panic,” February 25, 2025.  
2. Times of India, “Balabhadrapuram: The village where cancer stalks every home,” March 10, 2025.  
3. Andhra Pradesh Pollution Control Board, “Preliminary Environmental Assessment Report,” March 2025.  
4. Homi Bhabha Cancer Hospital, “Patient Outreach Program Data,” April 2025.  
5. Government of Andhra Pradesh, “Arogyasri Health Scheme Overview,” January 2025.