‘Stop lying’: Capt takes on Kejri

SAYS DELHI CM SHOULD GET DOWN TO THE TASK OF FINDING SOLUTIONS IN RIGHT EARNEST

: Welcoming the latest data on the link between Delhi’s pollution and stubble burning as vindication of his government’s stand on the issue, Punjab chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Thursday asked Arvind Kejriwal to stop lying in order to divert attention from his own failure to protect the national capital’s environment.

Hours after Union environment minister Prakash Javadekar said that stubble burning contributes to only 4% of PM 2.5 pollution in NCR, with the rest caused by local factors, he slammed his Delhi counterpart for refusing to accept the results of comprehensive studies on the issue. “In fact, it is Kejriwal who is in denial,” Amarinder said, reacting to the Delhi CM’s remark about “being in denial not helping”. He said if Kejriwal was serious about addressing Delhi’s crisis, he should stop being in denial immediately and get down to the task of finding solutions in right earnest.

The CM said Kejriwal had been spreading misinformation on the issue with the sole agenda of keeping Delhiites in the dark about the actual situation. He said the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER), in a research paper, has found that Delhi’s pollution is localised and not attributable to the farm fires in Punjab or the NCR.

The Punjab CM said it was obvious that Kejriwal, who had been blaming Punjab’s farm fires for the poor AQI levels in Delhi for the past several years, was taking refuge in brazen falsehoods to divert public attention from the AAP government’s total failure in controlling the environmental situation in Delhi.

Amarinder said while his government was doing its best to reduce stubble burning problem, the farmers unfortunately were facing a massive problem in managing paddy straw in the absence of fiscal aid for the purpose.

He reiterated his demand for ₹100 per quintal as financial support from the Centre to eliminate the stubble burning problem in Punjab.