Haryana, Punjab, UP should provide alternate machinery to farmers to stop stubble burning: Kejriwal

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday said that Haryana, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh state governments should provide alternate machinery and equipment to farmers to stop them from burning stubble.

"Haryana, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh state governments should provide alternate machinery and equipment to the farmers to stop them from burning stubble," Kejriwal said addressing a press conference at the Delhi Secretariat.

The statement came in the wake of high pollution levels and hazardous air quality in the national capital following the festival of Diwali.

Stressing that the national capital is choking because of the stubble burning in the neighbouring states of Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, Kejriwal urged the Bhartiya Janata Party to pressurise the Haryana and Uttar Pradesh governments to provide facilities and equipment to farmers in the states to stop them from burning stubble.

"I also want to appeal to the Congress to provide adequate facilities to the farmers in Punjab to cease stubble burning in the state," he said.

He said the farmers are ready to use alternate machinery to prevent rising levels of pollution, but there is a lack of effort by the governments.

He said that the Delhi government is committed to implementing the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP).

"The government is procuring 50 Lakh masks and delivery of the same started. I will also inaugurate the mask distribution ceremony in a school program from Friday, and we will start distributing masks to every household in Delhi through private and government school students," he said.

On the implementation of Odd-Even scheme, the chief minister said that it has proved to be a good example world-wide. "We want the third-time implementation to be successful," said the Chief Minister.