E-Paper
MPs favour national project to clean Ganga
CUTTING ACROSS party lines, Members of Parliament belonging to various political parties on Sunday decided to put up a ?call attention? move on the issue of Ganga pollution in Parliament. Interacting with mediapersons here at Tulsi Ghat today, MP of Samajwadi Party, Mohan Singh, BJP MP Balbir Punj, Congress MPs Tariq Anwar and Dr. Thokchom Meniya and nominated MP Chandan Mitra expressed their concern over the increasing pollution in river Ganga.
CUTTING ACROSS party lines, Members of Parliament belonging to various political parties on Sunday decided to put up a ‘call attention’ move on the issue of Ganga pollution in Parliament.
Interacting with mediapersons here at Tulsi Ghat today, MP of Samajwadi Party, Mohan Singh, BJP MP Balbir Punj, Congress MPs Tariq Anwar and Dr. Thokchom Meniya and nominated MP Chandan Mitra expressed their concern over the increasing pollution in river Ganga.
These MPs were here to participate in a seminar on Ganga in Varanasi organised under the joint auspices of South Asia Foundation of New Delhi, Society for Voluntary Action, Revitalisation and Justice (SVARAJ) of Bangalore and Sankat Mochan Foundation. Chief Priest of Sankat Mochan Prof. Veer Bhadra Mishra said that a solution to make the Ganga pollution-free existed in Varanasi itself but it should be implemented effectively.
The MPs saw the increasing pollution in Ganga here by going in a boat from Rajghat to Assi Ghat.
They were of the view that the issue of cleaning Ganga should be considered as a ‘national project’ and said they would extend all possible assistance in this regard. They said that they would raise this issue in the Parliament to ensure that this river became a pollution-free river.
Besides, the MPs said that they would forward a memorandum to the standing committee of Parliament on Environment and to the minister in charge of the ministry concerned.
Samajwadi Party MP Mohan Singh said that Varanasi was the heart of the Ganga and it was a matter of sorrow to see sewage flowing in the holy river. He said that he would raise this issue in Parliament through a proposal of ‘call attention’.
Singh said that the State Government should take the initiative to clean the Ganga while the Central Government should extend all help. He was in favour of a time-bound plan to be prepared under the Planning Commission after consulting foreign experts.
Congress MP Tariq Anwar, who was also political advisor of former Prime Minister late Rajiv Gandhi when the Ganga Action Plan-1 was initiated, expressed concern over the failure of the first phase of the Action plan. It was a matter of great concern to watch the rising pollution in the Ganga, he said and added that cleaning of Ganga in Varanasi should be considered as a ‘pilot project’ which could create awareness among other cities situated on the banks of this river.
Chandan Mitra, Thokchom Meniya and Balbir Punj said that they would extend all help in this direction and raise this issue before the Parliament and ministers concerned.
