Sukhbir Badal writes to Environment Minister, demands arrest of mill management
Sukhbir Badal call it Ecological Massacre
Shiromani Akali Dal president Sukhbir Singh Badal today accused the Punjab government of “patronizing an environmental massacre in Punjab by turning a blind eye to the massive and man-made ecological disaster caused by the Chadha Sugar Industries and owners of the distillery.”
In a letter to the Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Dr Harsh Vardhan, Mr Badal described the massive pollution of river Beas water and the shocking scale of death of aquatic life in water bodies in Punjab as a shocking example of the brazen insensitivity of the offending parties with active patronage of the state government. He said that the mill is owned by highly connected political leader who is also ‘religious advisor to the Punjab Chief Minister, Captain Amarinder Singh.
“The grave irony of the tragedy authored by a religious advisor of the Chief Minister is that it has led to the contamination of the sacred Kali Bein which is historically associated with the life of Sri Guru Nanak Dev ji.”
Demanding the immediate arrest of “the members of the management and the directors of the offending Mill/distillery who are guilty of an inter-state crime now”, Mr Badal said that they should be proceeded against under relevant provisions of law for endangering lives of millions of people in Punjab and Rajasthan apart from causing a massacre of aquatic life including fish and birds. He said that the Government of India should directly address the crisis as it has already become a multi-state calamity.
The former Deputy CM also demanded that a central team from the Ministry of Environment should be deputed for an on the spot study of the situation.
“That team should assess the extent of damage caused by this calamity so far and likely to be caused in coming days and determine the scale of compensation to be paid to the affected people.”
The burden of this compensation should be borne by the guilty industrialist, said Mr Sukhbir Singh Badal.
“The disaster is not just man made but is also at the same time an example of the unbelievably brazen crassness and insensitivity of the guilty parties in this regard to the cause of protection and preservation of ecology and wild-life, with active patronage of the state government. This environmental disaster is caused directly by the shockingly criminal and willful defiance of all norms and laws concerning ecology by powerful people enjoying direct patronage of the ruling dispensation in Punjab,” said Mr Badal.
The issue has now become an inter-state environmental calamity. In view of that, Sukhbir Badal said, the following things should be done:
The Government of India should directly address the crisis.
A central team from the Ministry of Environment should be deputed for an on the spot study of the situation. That team should also assess the extent of damage caused by this calamity so far and likely to be caused in the days, weeks and months to come.
That study should be used to determine the scale of compensation to be paid to the affected people and regions. The culprits are guilty of an inter-state crime having played havoc with environment in Punjab and Rajasthan. They must be tried for their culpability under appropriate provisions of law.
-PTC News
