Kochi (Kerala) [India], March 18 : Opposition leader VD Satheesan on Saturday said that the verdict of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) awarding Rs 100 crores as environment compensation against Kochi Corporation in Brahmapuram waste plant fire incident is a setback for the state government and the corporation.
While talking to the media, he said, "The verdict of the National Green Tribunal is a setback for the state government and the Corporation. The tribunal issued this verdict underlining what the opposition had said inside and outside the assembly."
"The government has taken full responsibility for the disposal of legacy waste at Brahmapuram earlier. Its supervision is done by the Corporation. The government failed miserably in that," Satheesan added.
Demanding strict action on the people responsible for the fire, he said, "Fines should be paid by the people responsible, not from tax money. The perpetrators of this heinous act are responsible for this. The government is trying to protect the contractors who set fire to this waste. They are relatives of party members. Not even a preliminary report has been submitted in the investigation. We will fight hard against it."
Cornering the Pinarayi Vijayan government in Kerala over the Brahmapuram fire incident, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Chief K Surendran on Friday asked the chief minister to inform how much money the state has received from the World Bank, Central Government, foreign and other agencies for waste disposal.
He said, "The Chief Minister should clarify how much money has been received from the World Bank, Central Government, foreign and other agencies for waste disposal in the last seven years."
"Stories of huge corruption in the state are coming out in the Brahmapuram issue. The fire is out, but the problem is not over," he added.
Launching an attack on Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, Surendran said, "Not only the contractor and the corporation, but the Chief Minister himself held discussions in this regard. The Chief Minister held talks with the contract company abroad. The Chief Minister's office itself pressed for this. The discussion on corruption took place during the Chief Minister's foreign trips."
Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor