Congress leader accuses Central Govt of ‘mishandling’ environmental issues

New Delhi, May 17

All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary and media and communication in-charge, Jairam Ramesh has accused the BJP-led Central Government of gross mishandling of environmental issues during a press conference on Friday.

He also expressed confidence that the Congress party and the INDIA bloc were set to secure a decisive majority in the Lok Sabha elections.

“The Central Government is responsible for the severe air pollution in Delhi as it took no effective steps to check pollution in the past 10 years,” he said.

Emphasising the interconnectedness of Delhi with neighbouring states like Haryana, Punjab and Rajasthan, he stressed the critical role of the Centre in addressing the city’s pollution.

He said air pollution was so severe in Delhi that it often ranked among the most polluted metropolitan cities in the country and across the world. He also dismissed the National Clean Air Programme as ineffective.

Ramesh also criticised the Central Government for its alleged failure to enforce pollution standards on the 11 coal-powered stations around Delhi.

“Of these 11 power stations, some standard or the other has been violated in at least nine power stations,” he said. He also condemned the repeated postponements of compliance deadlines.

Ramesh also spoke about pollution caused by Delhi landfills and 350 brick kilns around the city. He lamented the discontinuation of the Yamuna Action Plan, originally initiated under the UPA government.

“Namami Gange has had no impact on the cleanliness and uninterrupted flow of Ganga, while the condition of the Yamuna river has also worsened,” he said.