Kalam asks Baba Seechewal to clean Yamuna around Delhi

Sultanpur Lodhi, Jul 27 (UNI) Former President A P J Abdul Kalam today appealed to renowned environmentalist Baba Balbir Singh Seechewal to take up the work of cleansing the Yamuna river.

''Baba Seechewal and his team should work for cleaning the Yamuna around Delhi clean as this river is responsible for eighty per cent of the pollution in the 22 km stretch of the national capital area'', Dr Kalam said while addressing a gathering at the concluding programme of the eight-day long functions organised to mark the kar sewa of Kali Bein here.

The Bein rivulet is associated with the first Sikh Guru Nanak.

Dr Kalam further said making the Yamuna clean was definitely a national challenge which would be remembered by all the citizens of the country.

The former President said Baba Seechewal had rightly chosen the mission of purifying the sacred Bein eight years ago. '' Now that the sanctity of Bein was restored, Babaji could work in making Yamuna clean'', he added.

Earlier in an informal chat with mediapersons, he said politicians should make environment protection an agenda during electioneering.

During his address at the function, Dr Kalam said he came across a model which was executed by an NRI, H G S Gill at Karodi village in Hoshiarpur district. Mr Gill used a technology through which individual toilets were connected to a central village sewerage system and the sewerage water was treated and solid waste was converted as manure, he added.

The former President advised the municipalities in Jalandhar, Kapurthala and Hoshiarpur districts to take Mr Gill's advise.

Supporting Indo-US Nuclear Deal, the former President admitted that the electricity produced by nuclear power plants (NPPs) would be expensive as compared to hydro and thermal power. '' But at the same time we have to pay some price for clean energy'', he added.

To a query about possible radiation and disposal of waste of NPPs, he said nuclear waste generated from already working 14 NPPs in the country was being safely disposed off.

Dr Kalam paid obeisance at Ber Sahib Gurdwara, visited a sewage treatment plant and inaugurated a newly constructed 'Nawan Nankana' school for slum children.

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