Chief Minister of Punjab Amarinder Singh has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi clarifying that Punjab is trying to enforce the law against stubble burning to the maximum extent possible. The Punjab CM also stated that Punjab can't only be blamed for the prevailing situation in Delhi. "The large-scale industrial pollution, the traffic overload, the excessive construction activity taking place in the city which is equally, if not more, to blame," Singh wrote in the letter.
Singh said that he was hurt, shocked and angry at the declaration of a Public Health Emergency in Delhi. "This unprecedented development has exposed the hollowness of our claims of being a progressive and developed nation. How can a country be called developed when its capital has been reduced yo a gas chamber, not by a natural disaster but a series of man-made one," the Punjab CM said.
The Chief Minister, in his letter, said: "No Indian, and definitely no person in Punjab, is oblivious to the misery of our brethren in the national capital, whatever many around the country might have been led to believe." Singh also pointed out that his own children and grandchildren can barely breathe in the toxic air.
The Punjab CM also stressed the need for the Centre's urgent intervention. He concluded his letter saying, "After all, what is at stake goes way beyond our petty political ambitions."
Read the letter HERE:
Delhi turns into gas chamber
The Punjab CM's letter comes amid a public health emergency in the Delhi-NCR region. The Delhi government, on Friday, ordered schools in the national capital to remain closed till November 5. As air pollution levels touched the 'severe plus' category, the SC also banned construction-related works till November 5.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal called the national capital "a gas chamber" as NCR's Ghaziabad was said to be the most polluted zone. "Delhi has turned into a gas chamber due to smoke from crop burning in neighbouring states. It is very important that we protect ourselves from this toxic air. Through private and government schools, we have started distributing 50 lakh masks today (Friday). I urge all Delhiites to use them whenever needed," Kejriwal tweeted.
