December 3, 2025
Rajya Sabha MP Sushmita Dev’s speech on the Statutory Resolution on adopting the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Amendment Act, 202 in the state of Manipur
Sir, I join my floor leader and all my senior colleagues who spoke on the first day when you took charge. I congratulate you. I thank my Party for giving me an opportunity to speak on this Statutory Resolution. Hon. Minister explained that what the Government has invoked is Clause 1 of Article 252. When we talk about Clause 1 of Article 252, as a responsible parliamentarian, I must put on record, on behalf of my Party and the Opposition, that this Clause can only be invoked after the legislatures of two or more States have done their part by allowing the Government of India to legislate on a subject that, otherwise, they cannot legislate on. Once that Resolution is passed, the Government of India may pass the relevant Act. Then it has to go back to the legislature and by way
of a Resolution, they will adopt it. That is what hon. Minister said. What the nation must know and the viewers who are watching us on Sansad TV must know is that what we are doing today was meant to be done by the Assembly of Manipur. I hope I am not factually wrong in saying that. Why do we have to do it? That is because in the State of Manipur, there is a suspended Assembly. There is President’s Rule. And very interesting part is this. What is the purpose of this 2024 Amendment as stated by the Government itself? They talk about governance of trust. They talk about ‘ease of doing business’ and ‘ease of living’. I asked myself this while preparing for this Resolution, which one of these things is there today in the State of Manipur. And who is responsible for it? What is ‘ease of living’? What is ‘ease of doing business’? And the less I speak about trust, the better it is. She said that we are shedding crocodile tears. I would like to address in Bengali, Sir. Our throats have dried up, so has our tears, speaking on the State of Manipur. Be that as it may, water pollution is an extremely important subject. And as parliamentarians, we have to address that issue. I have worked with hon. Minister when he was the Chairman of the Standing Committee on Science and Technology, Environment, Forests and Climate Change. The situation is such that there are different sources of water pollution. But what is worrying for us as a nation is this. The fact is that when election comes, we talk about the Ganga and the Yamuna. When election comes, we talk about Har Ghar Jal, which is pure drinking water. Sir, let me give you some data. In 2024, only 69 per cent of the
Budget was spent on the National Mission for Clean Ganga. The Public Accounts Committee has said that more money was spent on promotions than the Namami Gange Mission. This is the state of affairs. Today, if people have to drink pure water, it has to come through a pipeline, which is Jal Jeevan Mission. I want to put one fact on record. My colleague here asked a question on Jal Jeevan Mission, which is about pure drinking water. The Government says that although the Mission has been extended to 2028, till today, there is no Budget provision and State Governments have to bear that cost. I want to ask this Government a simple question. It
was during the Interim Budget before Lok Sabha elections that the Finance Minister stood and said that the allocation is Rs.70,000 crore. Thereafter, in the same year, State Governments and officers were called and Annual Action Plan was made, and the State Governments were told to prepare their implementation accordingly. This was also the case of 2024-2025. Demand No. 63 also mentioned Rs. 70,000 crore. It is only after election on 1st February 2025 that the Finance Minister dropped her figure from
Rs.67,000 crore to Rs.22,500 crore. In Assam, it is more than Rs. 7,000 crore; in Bengal, it is Rs. 2,500 crore, and the entire burden has been left to the State Governments. And, to my mind, the way the Budget represented the situation to State Governments, it is nothing less than financial by the Government of India on the State Governments. These dues must be released. …(Interruptions)… Dead bodies were coming from Manipur into Assam on that river because of the kind of militancy that has happened. I find it shocking. It is a travesty of justice that in a State where there is no election till date, in a State where people are still living in relief camps and internally displaced people are protesting outside Raj Bhavan, we are making a mockery of it by bringing a
Water Pollution Act, 2024 Amendment and saying, we are helping Manipur. No, Sir; this is not the way to help Manipur. If you want to help Manipur, then, you must immediately hold elections democratically. If you truly believe in federalism, then, our heads should hang in shame. We have to invoke Article 252 Clause 1 in the Upper House of the Parliament rather than leave it to the Assembly. This is a murder of cooperative federalism.
