Anthrax scare in Goa

Sandesh Prabhudesai
24 October 2001  

The secretariat in Panaji, housing all ministers as well as top bureaucrats, was put on alert today afternoon, after receiving an envelop addressed to the chief minister with powder inside, suspected to be anthrax.

Incidentally, Goa's BJP government is celebrating completion of one year today. Timing it well, an unknown person appears to have sent this mysterious letter to chief minister Manohar Parrikar.

After an employee in the central registry on the ground floor of the one-time Adilshah Palace opened the envelop, the room was immediately vacated. Crime branch SP Davesh Srivastava rushed to the spot with his team.

The sample was then handed over to the health department authorities. As Goa does not have necessary facilities, the sample of the powder has been sent to Mumbai for further examination.

The employee was also sent to the Goa Medical College for examination while employees in the central registry are being provided with masks.

The possibility of some elements playing mischief on the occasion of BJP's one-year completion also cannot be ruled out. However, the state administration is not prepared to take any kind of risk, said official sources.

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