Chandigarh-The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) termed the 'Goa study tour' of BJP and Congress councillors as waste of taxpayers' money and said that it is more like a corruption and lobbying tour where BJP is trying to woo Congress Councillors to get their support to give out the contract of Daddumajra dumping ground.
Addressing a press conference here from the party office AAP Punjab chief spokesperson Malvinder Singh Kang said that Daddumajra dumping ground is a big issue for beautiful city Chandigarh. It has been there for 17 years and is getting bigger day by day. Congress and BJP have gulped down crores of rupees in the name of clearing this dumping ground. Contracts were given many times but always to their favourite companies to loot the public money. Kang added that contracts should be given after discussion and voting in the house only.
Kang said that as always corruption is rampant in Chandigarh corporation. BJP-Congress Councillors, MP Kirron Kher and Chandigarh administrator Banwarilal Purohit, all are part of it. And, now this 'Goa study tour' is just another way to loot taxpayers' money. Kang added that on this tour there are BJP and Congress councillors, nominated people who are supporters of BJP-Congress and 9 officers. He asked what was the need to take such a big team for a study tour when taxpayers are footing the bill? Why take 9 officers on such a tour? Why is no one from Daddumajra included for this tour when they are the ones facing the most dire issue here?
Kang was accompanied by AAP LoP Damanpreet Singh and Daddumajra Councillor Kuldeep Singh Tita. Councillors Anju Katyal, Prem Lata, Neha, Jaswinder kaur, Yogesh Dhingra, Suman, Ram Chander Yadav and Lakhbir Singh were also present in the press conference.
Addressing this press conference AAP leader Damanpreet said that BJP and Congress councillors are accompanied by their spouses in this tour too. Why should the taxpayers of Chandigarh pay for the traveling of these people. Daddumajra dumping ground is the reason for the number of diseases including cancer in the people living near it. Why was no initiative taken to solve this issue first, we condemn this wastage of public money through such useless tours, said Damanpreet. He added that it is not a study tour but a lobbying tour where BJP is trying to win the support of Congress MLAs to get their votes.
Representative of Daddumajra, councillor Kuldeep Singh Tita said that he even requested the governor to not install garbage processing plant in the residential area of Daddumajra but he didn't listen. Plant near residential area could increase the issues of people here who are already facing dangerous levels of air, water and land pollution here due to dumping ground.