Samajwadi Party MP Ram Gopal Yadav suggests rationing petrol, diesel to mitigate global warming

NEW DELHI: The Samajwadi Party's Rajya Sabha MP Ram Gopal Verma on Thursday suggested the government start rationing petrol and diesel to mitigate the effect of global warming and said that such measures can lead to loss in elections.
During a short discussion on the effects of global warming and the remedial steps to tackle it, Yadav said stringent measures are required to stop cutting down forests.People are using vehicles even for travelling 100 metres, he said sarcastically.
"Someday some government will need to impose a restriction that no more than this amount of petrol will be given to you in a day. You will have to do rationing. Our entire economy is getting eroded because of petrol and diesel.
"Large amounts of money are going to foreign countries due to imports. All these efforts have to be made. Even while knowing that this will lead to loss in elections but in the interest of the nation such measures will need to be taken," Yadav said.
Congress MP Ranjeet Ranjan said global warming is affecting the entire world. Covid has shown that if we remain silent, nature can heal itself. But because of global warming, we never compromise on development. This is the truth," said said.
"We discussed Namami Gange. A target of Rs 20,000 crore was set. After that, a target of Rs 30,000 crore was set. Has the Ganga become clean? Has the Yamuna become clean?
"Delhi is surrounded by waste on all sides. Take experts' opinions but don't spoil the future of children by playing the game of Tom and Jerry. The action plan which is required will not be completed by papers," Ranjan said.
The CPM's Rajya Sabha member John Brittas suggested that the states which are sincerely making efforts should be given incentives.
JD(U)'s Aneel Prasad Hegde raised the issue of organic farming and said GM crop companies misled the government as such crops cannot be used for organic farming.
AGP member Birendra Prasad Baishya suggested giving more weightage to ethanol while BSP MP Ramji Gautam said there is a need to pay attention to preventing deforestation. "One tree gives us 118 kilograms of oxygen every day. One tree absorbs one ton of carbon dioxide," he said.
He said there are 14 lakh brick kilns in the country that emit carbon dioxide and methane round the clock and demanded research for providing clean fuel technology to brick kilns.
NCP member Vandana Chavan said that according to Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report based on NASA statistics, 12 Indian cities will get submerged under water by the end of this century.
The Rajya Sabha chair said the environment minister will give a reply on the discussion next Wednesday.