Ballia-Noida Expressway will pollute Ganga: BJP

The Hindu, 18, December 2007

‘Farmers will lose their fertile lands leading to a lot of problems’

Lucknow: Alleging that the Ganga Expressway project between Ballia and Noida was prepared to benefit industrialists, BJP has said it will become a permanent source of pollution to the holy river besides farmers losing their fertile land there.

“The project, for which tenders have been invited by the Uttar Pradesh government without approval of the Central government departments, is going to become permanent source of pollution to the holy river Ganga, and that it not acceptable to the party,” senior BJP leader Om Prakash Singh said.

Alleging that the project was aimed at benefiting industrialists and was of no use, Mr. Singh said that due to the project, farmers will lose their fertile lands leading to a lot of problems in the area.

He said that BJP would protest the project tooth and nail and would launch massive agitation against it by involving farmers and locals of the area, who would be affected by it.

Stating that the project was made in a hurry and geologists and environmentalists were not consulted before giving it a go ahead, Mr. Singh said that even in last two sitting of the House the state government did not discuss the project.

The BJP leader said that there was no threat of flood in the area due to Ganga river as touted by the government as he himself was Irrigation Minister for over eight years and had never faced the problem.

The soil in that area of Ganga was fertile and giving it to private parties would lead to a serious problem, he said alleging that project was nothing but a conspiracy to grab farmers’ land.- PTI