Pb governor seeks details of Beas contamination from CM

Punjab Governor V P Singh Badnore today expressed concern over the contamination of the Beas river following the release of molasses by a sugar mill, and sought full details from Chief Minister Amarinder Singh about the damage to the environment.

In a written communique to Singh, Badnore said the river water is used for drinking in downstream districts of Punjab and Rajasthan.

He urged the state government to immediately take steps to reverse the situation and address the long-term issue of pollution of rivers in Punjab, which roughly means "the land of five rivers" - Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Sutlej, and Beas.

Meanwhile, Shiromani Akali Dal president Sukhbir Singh Badal accused the Amarinder Singh government of "patronising an environmental massacre" by not addressing the ecological issue "caused by Chadha Sugar Industries and owners of the distillery."
In a letter to Environment Minister Harsh Vardhan, Badal described the contamination as "a shocking example of the brazen insensitivity of the offending parties with active patronage of the state government."