Punjab CM refuses to meet Kejriwal on smog issue again

TIL Desk/National/Chandigarh/ Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh again ruled out a meeting with his Delhi counterpart Arvind Kejriwal, who wanted to hold talks over the issue of stubble burning, asking him not to “politicise” the serious matter.

Singh claimed he failed to understand why the Delhi chief minister was trying to force his hand, knowing well that any such discussion would be “meaningless and futile”. His response came after Kejriwal sought a meeting with him on Wednesday in Chandigarh.

“Sir, I am coming to Chandigarh on Wednesday to meet Haryana CM. Would be grateful if u cud spare sometime to meet me. It is in collective interest,” Kejriwal tweeted on Tuesday. Singh alleged that Kejriwal’s tendency to indulge in petty street politics was well-known. He said Kejriwal should stop politicising the serious issue of stubble burning.

He alleged that the Aam Aadmi Party leader was “trying to divert” public attention from his government’s “failure” to check the problem of pollution in Delhi, as exposed in the National Green Tribunal’s response to the “ill-conceived” odd-even scheme.

The problems faced by the national capital and Punjab on this count were completely different with no meeting ground, Singh said. He said unlike Punjab, Delhi’s problem was the result mainly of urban pollution caused by “mismanaged” transportation and “unplanned” industrial development.