Edited by: Patikrit Sen Gupta
Last update: Mar 23, 2023, 01:27 am IST
On March 2, a massive fire broke out at the Cochin Corporation municipal solid waste dump in Brahmapuram. (File photo: PTI)
The party is also raising questions about Prime Minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s visit to Europe where he allegedly met with the owners of Zonta Infratech, which won the contract for waste management, and demanded a CBI investigation into the matter. .
The Bharatiya Janata Party unleashed a passionate attack on Kerala’s Left Democratic Front (LDF) government on Wednesday from Delhi. The BJP alleged that the leftist government is endangering the health of the people of Kochi with its abject failure to scientifically dispose of the city’s legacy waste.
BJP Kerala chief and former union minister Prakash Javadekar lashed out at the left-wing government over alleged corruption in waste management, calling the Kochi landfill fire a man-made disaster rather than a natural calamity. It could have been avoided if there hadn’t been monumental corruption, he said.
“There are reports of sabotage at the source of the fire to hide the total failure of waste management. This needs more research. Lakhs of people experienced coughing, vomiting, nausea, skin and eye irritation, respiratory problems, taste disturbance, headache, hypertension, fatigue, etc. Thousands of people had to go for private medical treatment and moved out of the impact range of the fire and smoke. Javadekar said.
The BJP also alleged that the maintenance contract was awarded to Zonta Infratech for Rs 54 crore and is owned by the son-in-law of former LDF convenor Vaikom Viswan and subsequently the sub-contract was awarded to Arash Meenakshi Envirocare, owned by the son-in-law from former KPCC General Secretary N Venugopal for Rs 22 crore. The party is also raising questions about Prime Minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s visit to Europe, where it is alleged he met Zonta’s owners and demanded a CBI investigation into the matter.
V Muralidharan, a trade union minister from Kerala, also criticized the CPI(M) led government, tweeting: “Lakhs of innocents in Kochi suffered. Drowned – Still bearing the brunt of CPM & INC neglect, dynasty and corruption. Zonta Infra tech received the contract only because its owner is the son-in-law of a former LDF coordinator. He, in turn, favored the old women of the INC. This unspoken deal – Resulted in negligence and a deadly, life-threatening fire. Turned Kochi into a gas chamber – children and old people suffocated.”
On March 2, a massive fire broke out at the Cochin Corporation municipal solid waste dump in Brahmapuram. The CPI(M) said the BJP was fanning the issue even after the fire was brought under control to portray the state in a bad situation. light.
A committee constituted by the Kerala high court found that the waste treatment site at Brahmapuram does not conform to the provisions of the Solid Waste Management Regulations 2016.
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