Magsasay winner to do satyagraha for Yamuna

NEW DELHI: Intensifying his protest against the construction of Commonwealth Games village near the Yamuna banks, Magsasay award winner Rajendra Singh has
decided to launch a satyagraha to "save the river".
 
Singh said he would also protest against the construction of residential colonies by Delhi Metro near the Nizamuddin Banks.
 
"Currently Delhi is meeting 40 per cent of its water demand through the Yamuna and construction of games village would mean killing the river," the social worker known for his work in the field of water conservation said.
 
Against the deposition of cement, concrete and other such pollutants in the river bed, he said the games village should have been constructed in some other area in the capital
like Dwarka.
 
Singh completed the first phase of his satyagraha on July six and would launch it from Agra on Thursday.  Seeking a people's movement for protecting the Yamuna, Singh said setting up of a treatment plant, planting trees, and water conservation should be the focus plan for preserving the river.
 
"Delhi is also considered an earthquake-prone city and in such circumstances and in such a scenario construction on the river banks is not right," he said. Listing Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttaranchal as the "six sons" of the Yamuna, he said these states should take steps to ensure the full flow of the river.