Aman Sood
Patiala, July 18
Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s announcement that the government would launch a massive statewide campaign to clean the natural resources such as rivers and drains has come as a ray of hope for thousands of villagers living on the Ghaggar banks near the Punjab-Haryana border.
On Sunday, the CM had said that there’s “no dearth of funds” for this noble cause.
Sixtyfive-year-old Kashmir Singh from Dharmheri village has seen a number of unnatural deaths in surrounding areas. “I have lost so many relatives and friends to toxic Ghaggar. Hope the incumbent CM will come soon and drink water from the Ghaggar as he did from Kali Bein.”
HP, HARYANA TOO POLLUTING RIVER
We are monitoring the water flow. But there’s little we can do as the Ghaggar gets pollutants from HP, Haryana and Chandigarh too. Even Punjab councils and corporations continue to pollute the river, despite reminders to run STPs. —Karunesh Garg, PPCB member secretary
Hundreds like him in over three dozen villages on the banks of the Ghaggar are suffering from cancer, skin, heart, pancreas and other ailments, resulting in unnatural deaths.
“Several court cases are pending and numerous letters have been written to various government departments, but nothing concrete has been done to check the flow of waste, sewer, industrial, human and medical wastes, including direct release by distilleries,” rues Kashmir Singh.
“Every third house in these villages along the Ghaggar has a patient suffering from cancer or other ailment. Even our cattle are sick. Hope the CM gives priority to the Ghaggar and its cleaning as it flows through his home district as well and is becoming the leading cause of cancer.”
Meanwhile, Ghanaur residents said: “Assi mar rahein haan. Ghar wich har thorhey din baad bimari aundi hai (We are drying. Every second day someone gets ill).” “Even for a small problem, we visit a doctor, who refers us to the Government Rajindra Hospital from where we further get sent to the PGI. Once someone reaches the PGI, it’s almost certain that he/she is suffering from cancer,” they rued.
The Ghaggar runs its course of around 165 km through the state. It enters Punjab at Mubarikpur village and leaves it at Bhunder village. A recent report prepared by the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) under the National River Monitoring Programme shows that the quality of water flowing into the Ghaggar at Mubarikpur is Class “D”. It’s mainly because of the discharge of domestic and industrial waste into the river while it flows through Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh and Haryana. “But, the quality of water remains Class “D” (unfit for drinking) till the river leaves Punjab and enters Haryana,” reads the report.
In all, 18 towns and villages of Punjab discharge sewage into the river without any treatment, the report adds.
While the PPCB does not believe that distilleries and industrial units along the Ghaggar still dump waste into the river in connivance with local officials, people living along the river banks complain of foul and pungent smell emanating from the water body, especially during winter and pre-monsoon when the flow is less.
Clean river drive — ray of hope for villages along Ghaggar
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