As the national capital struggles with rising pollution levels, Delhi Chief Minister Atishi has launched a scathing attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), accusing it of playing “dirty politics” which she claims is the real cause behind both air and water pollution in the city.
She assured the public that under the leadership of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal, the Delhi government is actively working to resolve the situation.
“The pollution levels in Delhi are increasing. Not only is air pollution rising, but pollution in the Yamuna River has also worsened over the past few days, as evidenced by the formation of toxic foam at Kalindi Kunj. Today, the people of Delhi want to know the reason behind this, and I tell them, the real reason is the dirty politics of the BJP. Everyone is aware that stubble burning is a major contributor to rising pollution levels in Delhi during winter. The AAP government in Punjab has significantly reduced stubble burning over the past two years. According to the Centre’s own statistics, incidents of stubble burning have been halved since the AAP took charge in Punjab. In contrast, if you look at Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, stubble burning has actually increased. In Haryana, farm fires have risen by 23%, and in Uttar Pradesh, they have surged by 70%,” said Atishi during a press conference on Sunday.
Questioning the BJP-led governments in Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, CM Atishi asked, “If the Punjab government can reduce stubble burning, why can’t the governments of Uttar Pradesh and Haryana do the same? In Delhi, we have only CNG and electric buses, whereas 100% of the interstate buses coming from UP and Haryana are diesel-powered. Why can’t the governments of Haryana and UP introduce electric buses? It’s because they want to play dirty politics with the people of Delhi. While Delhi has no brick kilns, there are 3,800 brick kilns in the NCR region, contributing significantly to pollution levels in the capital.”
Further criticising BJP leaders for their visits to the Yamuna River in the Kalindi Kunj area, Atishi said, “BJP leaders have been visiting Kalindi Kunj for photoshoots, but the real cause of the toxic foam in the Yamuna is industrial waste being dumped into the river by factories in Haryana. The UP government also contributes to the problem by releasing polluted water into the Yamuna.”
Promising action to combat the rising pollution levels, Atishi said, “We are continuously working to find solutions under the leadership of Arvind Kejriwal. For the past two years, we have been defoaming the Yamuna, and we will begin this process again tonight.”
Speaking on the same issue, AAP leader Satyendar Jain accused the BJP of arresting AAP leaders to obstruct their efforts to clean the Yamuna.
“Kejriwal ji promised to clean the Yamuna, and we began working on this at a rapid pace. When the BJP realised we were making progress, they arrested several of our leaders. I was in charge of the Yamuna cleaning project, and that’s why I was also arrested,” said Jain.
(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)
