Wrong to blame Punjab for poor air in Delhi: Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann

Interacting with the media in Chandigarh, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said that the blame for rising pollution in Delhi is being unnecessarily put on Punjab and its farmers. He emphasized that this is a serious issue of the entire region, which all states will have to resolve together.

The Chief Minister put forward a demand to Prime Minister Narendra Modi that a joint platform of the Chief Ministers of Punjab, Delhi, Haryana, and other neighboring states should be created and a meeting called. According to him, instead of blaming the food provider alone, the centre should formulate a permanent policy.

Reacting to the statements of BJP leader Manjinder Singh Sirsa, Mann said that an uproar over stubble smoke was being raised even before the crop harvesting had started in the state. He said that even if the wind blows at a speed of one hundred kilometers per hour, the smoke will still take days to reach Delhi, so putting Punjab alone in the dock is not justified.

He also reminded that paddy is cultivated across the border on the Lahore side as well. Meanwhile, the Chief Minister stated that the target of procuring 18 million metric tonnes of paddy inside Punjab has been fulfilled and the total arrival is expected to cross 20 million metric tonnes.

Key developments

• Chief Minister objected to Punjab being targeted for Delhi's pollution
• Appealed to the Prime Minister to call a joint gathering of heads of all concerned states
• Asked the central government to bring a permanent policy instead of blaming farmers
• Stated the likelihood of paddy arrival in the state exceeding 20 million metric tonnes