Nominate your representatives to test water samples: Ram Vilas Paswan challenges Arvind Kejriwal

NEW DELHI: Union Minister of Consumer Affairs Ram Vilas Paswan on Monday slammed Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal over the latter's accusations of calling a BIS report on drinking water in national capital as "false and politically motivated", and challenged him to nominate his representatives to test the water samples again.

In an escalated war of words, Paswan, during Parliament session on Monday said, "You cannot drink tap water directly. At many places water comes in all sorts of colours, yellow, blue... name your officials for a team which will also have top BIS officials. Let them go to any area, pick samples and get them tested from any lab."

Denying Delhi CM's claim who said that the report which stated that Delhi along with Kolkata and Chennai has failed in almost 10 out of 11 quality parameters of drinking water was false and politically motivated, Paswan said "He is doing politics now."

Later, taking to microblogging site Twitter, the LJP chief said, "Today, on the first day of the winter session, I announced on the floor of the Lok Sabha that the Chief Minister of Delhi Arvind Kejriwal must nominate your representative to test the water samples again. We nominate Mr. Pramod Tiwari, DG (BIS) and Mr. J. Roychowdhury DDG (Labs) BIS on behalf of BIS."

__ ________ ____ __ ____ ___ _____ ______ __ ___ __ _____ __ __ ______ __ ___________ ____ @ArvindKejriwal __ ______ ____ __ ______ __ ____ ____ ____ _________ _____ _____ __ BIS __ ___ __ ____ ______ ______,DG(BIS) __ ____ __ ________ DDG(Labs)BIS __ _____ ____ ____1/3 @PMOIndia - Ram Vilas Paswan (@irvpaswan) November 18, 2019

Paswan further said that this joint team will collect water samples from every area of Delhi and get it tested in any government certified lab. "We do not mind. My aim is to provide clean drinking water to people not only in Delhi but across the country," he added.

He further challenged AAP chief and said Kejriwal should ask his MLAs to call a press conference and say that pure drinking water is being supplied in Delhi. "People of Delhi will decide if they are right or wrong," he added.

________ __ ____ ________ __ __ ____ __ __ _____ __ _____ _____ __ ____ _____ ___ _____ _____ __ _______ __ ___ ___ ______ __ ____ __ _____ __ __ ___ ___ ___ ___ __ _____ 3/3 @ArvindKejriwal @AamAadmiParty @PMOIndia @IndianStandards - Ram Vilas Paswan (@irvpaswan) November 18, 2019

On Saturday, Consumer Affairs Minister Ram Vilas Paswan released the second phase of the Bureau of Indian Standardisation (BIS) study which stated that all 11 Delhi samples did not comply with the quality norms. It said piped water was also unsafe for drinking water.\

Later, posters were seen in parts of Delhi slamming the AAP government for making people to drink "poisonous" water.

Posting one such poster, Health Minister Harsh Vardhan tweeted, "Arvind Kejriwal is giving poison to the people of Delhi in the name of free water supply. Delhi water was found to be the most poisonous in a survey of 20 cities. The AAP government is making tall claims of development but has failed to even provide safe drinking water to the people."

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_____ __ ____-____ ____ ____ ____ @AamAadmiParty _____ _____ __ ____ ____ __ ______ _____ ___ _____ ___ ___ pic.twitter.com/fePhjjoNtf - Dr Harsh Vardhan (@drharshvardhan) November 17, 2019

Replying to Vardhan's post, Kejriwal said, "Sir, you are a doctor. You know this report is false and politically motivated. A person like you should not become a part of such dirty politics," said Kejriwal, who is the chairman of the national capital's water utility, Delhi Jal Board.

"A city's water quality cannot be judged on the basis of just 11 samples. Moreover, Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan is not disclosing where the samples were taken from. I will take five samples from each ward of Delhi, get it checked and then put the data in public," he had declared.

"I want to say with challenge that no CM can claim that we have done politics on such a matter," said Paswan in the Parliament session.

"We are not doing politics over water, we want to seek the support of Parliament on the issue. There should be no politics over the safe quality of drinking water...," he said.

The testing of water samples was conducted to check organoleptic and physical parameters and know the chemical and toxic substances and bacteriological quality besides virological and biological parameters.