Himachal Pollution Control Board officers slapping challan of Apple growers, no action on industrial pollution: Satti

Speaking on the resolution to declare a national disaster in the State Assembly BJP MLA Satpal Satti said that the unscrupulous Pollution Control Board (PCB) officials imposed a fine of Rs 1 lakh on the apple orchardist.  

He said that PCB officials do not take action against factory operators (who are polluting Himachal Rivers with industrial pollutants) and when apple growers throw rotten apples in the drain, PCB officials take action against them. He said that a deduction should be made in the Bureaucracy’s salary for the sake of a relief package.

 Satpal Satti said that the salaries of bureaucracy, officers, and employees should be deducted by Rs 10,000 as subsistence allowance.  MLAs have also donated their entire salaries to the disaster.  Their salaries should also be deposited in the disaster fund.

 Satpal Satti said that there is a need to stop the construction.  People want to be sitting in a hotel with their feet in the river.  There should be limits on construction on the banks of rivers.  He said that officers should be deployed to speed up relief and rehabilitation work.  MLAs should be made ministers and given responsibility.

Replying to the Member industry minister Harsh Vardhan Chauhan said that Member’s contention of the rising river bed is right. He said that state river birds have a Natural wealth of tune to 2.50 Cr MT in form of sands and stone chips however state legal mining could harvest only 79.5 lakh MT quarrying. He said every year about twenty percent of sand and stone chips are left used which is wreaking Havoc in the form of floods on all river basins.