Concerted Efforts To Be Put In To Make Ludhiana Clean: Punjab Minister Kataruchak

Punjab Food and Civil Supplies Minister Lal Chand Kataruchak Thursday stressed that concerted efforts would be made to make Ludhiana clean, green, and pollution-free as a slew of projects were already going on in the district to achieve this mission.
    
Chairing a review meeting with MLAs and heads of different government departments here, the minister said the state government is emphasizing creating a pollution-free environment for the people of Punjab.
    
Under this mission, in Ludhiana, as many as 50,000 tree saplings would be planted in each assembly constituency to increase the forest cover of the district.
    
Likewise, three trees per tube-well scheme have also been rolled out wherein three saplings would be planted around each tube-well, he said, adding as many as 75 saplings will be planted in each village of the district under this mission.
     
He also said more than 5,000 saplings would be planted in the coming days on the Ludhiana-Chandigarh road under the beautification project.
     
He further informed that more than 1.25 crore saplings would be planted in the entire state this year to increase forest cover in Punjab.
     
The minister reviewed the ongoing rejuvenation project for 'Buddha Dariya' wherein he took stock of the construction of sewerage treatment plants in the district.
    
The minister said currently a total of 765 million litres per day of waste was being discharged in 'Buddha Dariya' including domestic, waste, and industrial waste.
     
With the strengthening and augmentation of existing sewerage treatment plants, the district would be able to treat nearly 846 MLD waste which is way higher than the total discharge as a whopping amount of Rs 650 crore was being spent on these plants.
     
He added that it would lead to creating a pollution-free environment in the Ludhiana district. The minister directed the officials of the pollution control department to develop a mechanism to act against the polluters immediately after receiving complaints from the people so that no one could dare to pollute the 'Buddha Dariya'.