BHUBANESWAR: Commerce and Transport minister Bibhuti Bhushan Jena on Saturday said the critical issue of air quality and vehicular pollution should not be politicised by the Opposition.
Amidst criticism, Jena hit out at the BJD saying it was misleading the public by misrepresenting facts and making it an issue for political gains. It was the BJD government which had imposed the Rs 10,000 fine for violation of pollution under control certificates (PUCC) in 2019, he said. On the other hand, the BJP government is trying to reduce the penal amount, said Jena.
He also targeted the BJD for claiming that there is inadequate number of centres to issue PUCC. “In 2019, there were only 52 pollution testing centres in Odisha, but now there are more than 1,500 registered units with over 2,000 active machines in the state. We are also opening new centres within 24 hours of receiving an application,” said Jena in an X post.
The minister further said the increasing air pollution in the state is a cause of concern and it is the moral responsibility of all to curb it. “As of now, only 21 per cent vehicles in the state have PUCCs which is why every vehicle owner must abide by the Motor Vehicles Act,” he said.
Jena said the BJP government extended the deadline to enforce the PUCC rule on people’s demand. “We are empathetic to the demands of the people and reconsidered our decision. During the previous government, no one listened to the requests of the citizens,” he said.
Jena said the government is committed to the interests of the people, environmental protection and above all, compliance with the law.