INDIA

Environmental groups urge Centre to 'halt Central Vista project, use resources for Covid-19 response'

New Delhi: The Central Vista project of the NDA government has been marred with controversies ever since it was conceptualised as what the Centre believes is development, rights activists see it as environmental destruction.

However, the conversation has risen above all that in wake of the raging Covid-19 pandemic in India, and many feel it is not in the best interests of many to continue work on the project risking several lives.

In line with this same sentiment, many civil society groups and environmental organisations across the country yesterday appealed to the Centre to stop the "ambitious Central Vista Redevelopment Project", at least till the pandemic is over.

The statement was issued by 65 organisations on Wednesday, urging the central government to pause the Rs 13,450 crore-project and divert all available resources towards the handling of the pandemic.

"All the unnecessary expenditures, including the construction of lavish Central Vista, must be halted and all available resources must be diverted to urgent Covid response," a statement issued by Vikalp Sangam, one of the organisations, said on Wednesday.

The statement stated that the Covid-19 outbreak has shown that human health and environment are correlated.

It also points at working towards "socially just and ecologically sustainable, alternative pathways to well-being", and also suggests "short, medium and long term measures for mitigating the impacts of the pandemic on the lives and livelihoods of millions of people".

"The abysmal state of the public health system and the callous ignoring of credible expertise and clear warnings, by the central and most state governments, have brought us here. Doctors, nurses, paramedics, and all other frontline workers are overstretched and have lost their colleagues in the line of duty. The pandemic's second wave in India is a systematic political failure for which the government needs to be held accountable. The spread of the virus has shown the strong relationship between our environment and human health," the statement further said.

Publisher: TimesNowNews English