The Punjab Pollution Control Board has installed 28 sewage treatment plants (STPs) with a total capacity of 291.7 MLD in the river’s catchment area. Meanwhile, the Haryana State Pollution Control Board has created a sewage treatment capacity of 588 MLD under the Ghaggar Action Plan.Selja also pressed the government on whether there were plans to clean the river and provide special assistance to cancer patients from Below Poverty Line (BPL) families.In response, Jadhav stated that Haryana reported 1,486 cancer cases in 2019, 1,536 in 2020, 1,580 in 2021, 1,630 in 2022, and 1,678 in 2023 under the National Cancer Registry Programme of the ICMR.Regarding assistance for cancer patients, Jadhav said, “The treatment of cancer is either free or subsidised in government institutions. Further, financial assistance is provided to poor patients under the Health Minister’s Cancer Patient Fund component of the Umbrella Scheme of the Rashtriya Arogya Nidhi (RAN).”He also noted that the Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY) provides health insurance coverage of ₹5 lakh per family annually for secondary and tertiary care hospitalisation. “Since its inception, treatment for cancer diseases has been included in the benefit package. All modes of treatment — Medical Oncology, Surgical Oncology, and Radiation Oncology — are covered under the scheme,” he added.In a press statement, Selja highlighted the urgency of addressing the issue. “The river’s water has become so polluted that it is neither fit for drinking nor bathing. Polluted water is contributing to cancer, with the number of cancer patients increasing every year,” she said.“However, there are no adequate treatment facilities for these patients, forcing them to travel to Delhi, Chandigarh, or other states for treatment,” she added.
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