Chandigarh, August 10, 2020 (Yes Punjab News)
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Punjab has said the profitable solution to address the menace of straw-burning was to run the Guru Nanak Dev Thermal Plant Bathinda on straw, instead of going ahead with its decision to demolish it with ulterior motive.
In a statement issued from party headquarters, senior party leaders, including Aman Arora, Prof. Baljinder Kaur, and Rupinder Kaur Ruby (All MLAs) said that, on the one hand Chief Minister Amarinder Singh appeared to be working hard on the disposal of straw as per accountability fixed by the Supreme Court of India, on the other the proposal to revive the plant was being shelved under pressure from the land mafia.
The AAP leaders alleged that toeing the footsteps of the Badals, the Amarinder Singh government had decided to dole out 1764 acres of land of Bathinda Thermal Plant, dedicated to Guru Nanak Dev, to its patronized land mafia lords, saying were the intentions and policies of Chief Minister Amarinder Singh and Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal, they would have gone the whole hog to revive the invaluable heritage associated with the first Sikh Guru Baba Nanak, saying they had outsmarted Sukhbir Singh Badal, turning it to a mere property deal under pressure from the land mafia.
Aman Arora and Meet Hair sought a clarification from Chief Minister saying as to why he had shelved the lucrative proposal put across by the Board of Directors (BODs) of Bathinda Thermal Plant on November 21, 2018, suggesting to run the thermal unit on straw, adding the Power Com at that point in time had expressed keenness to run a 60 MW unit on straw.
Aman Arora and Prof. Baljinder Kaur questioned the Chief Minister and Finance Minister why the Union Ministry of Renewable Energy had not shown any interest in running the Bathinda Thermal Plant on straw at a video conference held on July 10 through the Prime Minister’s Office and now that the National Green Tribunal (NGT) had been seeking a reply on the issue of running the thermal on straw, at whose behest the Power Com and the Punjab Energy Development Agency (PEDA) were running away from filing a reply?
Aman Arora and Rupinder Kaur Ruby and other legislators demanded the Chief Minister should; first of all stall the process of tenders for demolition of Bathinda Thermal Plant, which was slated to be opened on August 20.
The AAP leaders also demanded the process of handing over the possession of thermal land to PUDA stopped immediately and work on the revival proposal by running the thermal plant on straw, thus addressing the problem of pollution due to stubble burning in the Malwa area, including Bathinda, Mansa, Sangrur, Barnala, Faridkot, Sri Muktsar Sahib and increasing income of the farmers.
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