KTR's cold raises concerns in COVID-19 time; minister responds

A video clip of Telangana’s IT and municipal administration minister KT Rama Rao suffering a visibly very bad cold while participating in a public event has raised concerns about his health, especially in the Covid-19 time.

The high-profile minister in the Telangana cabinet - son of chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao - was in his constituency Siricilla on Monday to take part in a few programmes including the inauguration of new amenities worth about Rs 12 crore at a textile park.

Siricilla in north Telangana is famous for its handlooms, which are fast mechanizing.

In the said video, KTR, as he is popularly known, is seen blowing his nose into a red hand towel repeatedly while sitting beside officials on the dais and also while he unveiled a plaque.

A voice in the video could be heard saying, “Shouldn’t (he) be sent to quarantine?”

The visuals made several of his admirers worried on twitter too. KTR has 2.3 million followers on the popular social media platform.

“KTR Sir, disturbed to know that you were down with flu symptoms yesterday in Siricilla. Concerned about your health. You have been a COVID-19 warrior since the virus engulfed us, unmindful of your health. Please reassure us about your health. You are our hope. Please take care,” one G Subramanya Sastry tweeted.

Taking note of concerns, KTR explained it as an allergy he is suffering from for a long time.

“Many thanks for your concern, Sir. Perfectly well now. Developed an allergic cold (struggling for many years) en route to Sircilla. I did not want to cancel my visit suddenly as it would inconvenience many people. Apologies for any inconvenience I may have caused inadvertently,” KTR replied on Tuesday(May 12) afternoon.

While one Ashok Rangu tweeted saying he prayed to Dharmapuri Lakshminarasimha Swamy for KTR’s wellbeing, some opined the minister should have cancelled his schedule given the prevalence of the virus.

Telangana has, as of Monday night, a total of 1,275 COVID-19 recorded cases, with 30 deaths and 801 recoveries. All 79 new cases reported on Monday are from Hyderabad.

Siricilla district has no new case reported in the past 14 days.