CM Mann scraps proposed textile park near Ludhiana’s Mattewara forest

Mann announced the decision after a 45-minute-long meeting in Chandigarh with a seven-member delegation of the Public Action Committee (PAC), the NGO spearheading the agitation against the mega Integrated Textile Region and Apparel Park along the Sutlej river since 2020, when the proposal was mooted during former CM Capt. Amarinder Singh’s regime.

“I categorically announce that not only in Mattewara but the state government will not allow any industry to come up on the river banks of Punjab for avoiding any sort of water pollution in them,” said the chief minister after a meeting with the PAC on Mattewara Forest.

“We are happy that chief minister was proactive in taking the decision today and we also want him to be serious on cleansing of Buddha Nullah, which has turned into an eye sore for the residents of the Ludhiana city,” said Jaskirat Singh, a member of the PAC delegation. The

PAC members were later felicitated on reaching Ludhiana.

Earlier on Sunday, protesters, including politicians, social activists, farmer leaders, trade unionists and environmentalists, held a demonstration outside a gurdwara along the Sutlej river in the Mattewara area to oppose the textile park project.

After the meeting, the chief minister, in a press release, lamented that his predecessor Capt. Amarinder Singh gave a nod to the project proposed by the Centre for setting up a textile park on over 1,000 acres on this land, without even thinking about its pros and cons.

He said that the proposed project site is located near the Mattewara forests and on floodplains of the Satluj river but the Captain government ignored the cascading effects which this project will have on the environment.

According to the CM, apart from cutting of trees, this project would have also led to a massive pollution in the river water, thereby jeopardising human life along with flora and fauna in the region.

The previous Congress government under Capt Amarinder Singh had mooted the project in July 2020 and 956.99 acres has been acquired from nearby villages. Though the site where the textile park was set to come up does not fall in the forest area, it is sandwiched between two chunks of protected area.

CM Mann, however, clarified that the state government is ready to allot any new chunk of land for this proposed Textile park with the condition that it doesn’t pollute the waters of the state.

Earlier in Amritsar, Mann said efforts will be made for developing the Mattewara forest as an ecological park for attracting tourism.

Meanwhile, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) termed the scrapping of the proposed textile park project in Ludhiana a “bold and brave’ decision, citing it as a proof of the party’s commitment to making Punjab clean and green.

AAP’s state chief spokesperson Malvinder Singh Kang said the AAP is committed to protect the water, wood and air of Punjab to make the state prosperous and pollution free.

Rajya Sabha member Raghav Chadha said the chief minister’s decision is a reflection of a true statesman who is receptive and sensitive towards legitimate concerns of the public.

‘Regressive, short-sighted’ decision: Capt. Amarinder

Former chief minister Capt Amarinder Singh termed the scrapping of the Mattewara Textile Park project as the most regressive and short-sighted decision.

“You don’t throw away the baby with the bath water,” he said in a statement, while reacting to the government decision.

Questioning the diatribe launched against the project, he clarified that the textile park was not to come up within the Mattewara forest area as was being said, but outside it.

He said that all environmental concerns had been addressed according to the United Nations guidelines and only then the park was approved.

Capt Amarinder regretted that the Aam Aadmi Party government, after initially deciding to go ahead with the project had scrapped it, just because some people opposed it without any justification or without any technical and scientific knowledge about the environment.

The former chief minister said the Ludhiana Textile Park was one of the seven such parks coming up across the country. This textile park was set up with the specific objective of sustainable industrialisation that does not harm the environment according to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 9.

“When Punjab is reeling under such a financial crisis and investments are not coming, such a regressive decision will further discourage the industry from coming here”, he observed, while adding, such a crucial decision should not have been taken in such haste,” he said.

He pointed out that the National Green Tribunal had already set up an expert committee to examine the project and objections raised from certain quarters. He said the government should have waited for its decision. ENDS