Punjab Government on Friday re-constituted Punjab Pollution Control Board. In a notable development, Baba Sewa Singh Khadur Sahib has been included as the Board member, replacing Padmashree environmentalist Sant Balbir Singh Seechewal.

Out of total 17 members, four are non-official.

As per the notification issued by the state’s Science, Technology and Environment Department, the Board is headed by the PPCB chairman, with Principal Secretaries of the departments of Science, Technology and Environment, Water resources, Local Government, Industries and Commerce, Agriculture, or their nominee not below the rank of joint secretary are its members.

Besides, Municipal Corporation Commissioners of Amritsar and Ludhiana, GMADA chief administrator, Chief Town Planner, PAU vice-chancellor, Punjab Small Industries and Export Corporation managing director, Punjab Water Supply and Sewerage Board managing director, among others are also its members.

Among the four non-official members, the government has replaced Sant Seechewal with Baba Sewa Singh, also a noted environmentalist and religious preacher, who is heading the Nishan-e-Sikhi charitable trust.

However, Sant Seechewal’s removal has failed to go down well as it came at a time when the Sikh community is celebrating 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev, and the padmashree awardee had worked day and night to clean Kali Bein — a rivulet of the Beas in Doaba region of Punjab — where the founder of Sikhism, Guru Nanak, is believed to have attained enlightenment after taking a dip, and led to the origin of Sikhism’s mool-mantra ‘Ik Onkar’.

It is believed that the move came in the wake of Sant Seechewal speaking against the pollution in the Beas river and death of thousands of fishes after industrial effluents were let off by a sugar mill associated with Paramjit Singh Sarna, the religious advisor of Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh

The Beas river pollution turned out a major embarrassment for the Punjab Government as the National Green Tribunal (NGT) had imposed Rs 50 crore penalty on the authorities concerned.

Known as “Eco Warrior” or “Eco Baba”, Baba Seechewal was has been awarded Padma Shri for social service and rejuvenating Kali Bein, which was reduced to a filthy drain due to several dozen villages and towns discharging sewer water into it, into “Holy Bein” as it is known today.

Since 2000, Baba Seechewal has been cleaning the highly polluted Kali Bein with the help of a small team without any government help and has exhibited a rare example of cleaning the water.

Baba Seechewal has worked hard from running public awareness campaigns to uprooting water hyacinth himself, from evolving low cost sewerage system to raising funds, to beautification of river bank with trees, bathing ghats, and roads.

SAD CONDEMNS CONG GOVT FOR REMOVING SANT SEECHEWAL

Chandigarh: Condemning the Congress Government for removing noted environmentalist Sant Balbir Singh Seechewal as PPCB member, Shiromani Akali Dal on Friday said that it was especially painful that religious personality who had rejuvenated the Kali Bein rivulet associated with Sri Guru Nanak Dev had been insulted in such a manner on the 550th parkash purb of the great saint.

The party asked the Congress Government to immediately reinstate Sant Seechewal as PPCB member, saying that this was necessary to encourage public trust in environment protection activities being taken up by the Pollution Board.

“Sant Seechewal had carved out a name for himself combining self help philosophy with the environmental essence of Gurbani. He should have been selected for special honour during celebrations of the 550th parkash purab of Baba Nanak as he has cleaned and rejuvenated the Kali Bein. Instead of doing this, the Congress government has insulted Sant Seechewal and all right thinking environmentalists by removing him as member of the PPCB,” said former minister and SAD spokesperson Daljit Singh Cheema.

Cheema said that the Punjab Government was in urgent need of Sant Seechawal’s expertise not only to clean its rivers but also its village ponds. “However, it seemed that the government was in no mood to even listen to constructive criticism....The State’s bid to clean its village ponds by using the Seechewal method would also suffer with the Sant not being associated with the PPCB,” he said adding that it was unfortunate as many other States have adopted the Seechewal method to clean its rivers and ponds.