The Aam Aadmi Party on Monday demanded Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal’s resignation over the “threefold rise” in the number of stubble burning cases in the State over the last year. AAP said the Haryana government had no solution for the problem.
Hitting back, the Delhi unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party accused AAP of lying to cover up the rising instances of stubble burning under its own government in Punjab.
Stubble burning has been a contentious issue between the AAP and the BJP governments for many years now. Meteorological factors and pollution due to the burning of agricultural waste cause air quality levels to plummet in Delhi and neighbouring States during winter.
Addressing a press conference, AAP’s Haryana vice-president Anurag Dhanda said stubble burning cases have been on the rise in the State, with 62 reported in 2021, 80 in 2022 and 277 in 2023 so far.
AAP chief spokesperson Priyanka Kakkar said many areas falling in BJP-ruled States, including Meerut, Hapur, Sonipat, Surat, Gandhinagar, and Gorakhpur, are on the list of the 100 most polluted cities in the world.
Meanwhile, Delhi BJP secretary Harish Khurana said as per a recent study on instances of burning crop residue, a total of 1,565 cases were recorded from September 15 to October 8 in Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Rajasthan, and Madhya Pradesh.
“Of these, 969 cases, or 62% of the total residual burning events, have been reported from Punjab alone. Priyanka Kakkar has tried to mislead Delhiites to save her party’s Punjab government from the responsibility of polluting the air of north India,” he said.
