Centre not genuine on Ganga issue: Shankaracharya

ARANASI: The Shankaracharya of Gowardhanmutt Peethpuri, Swami Nishchalanand Saraswati, accused the Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of

cheating the countrymen on the issue of the Ganga. He said until the policy and motive of the government became clear, the country would have to face the problems of terrorism and naxalism. He said 'reservation' and 'concessions' are affecting the working capacity of the countrymen. He criticised the managers of Mahakumbh for converting the holy occasion into a mela (fair).

The Shankaracharya arrived in the city on Saturday night. Before leaving for Hardwar, he spoke to reporters on Sunday. The seer lashed out at the Congress-led UPA government at the Centre and BJP government at Uttarakhand for 'killing the Ganga'. He said despite knowing the cultural and spiritual importance of the holy stream, the Uttarakhand government was constructing over 500 dams before Tehri to generate energy for commercial gains. And, the Congress-led Central government was giving full support to the Uttarakhand government. He held it shocking that despite having other sources of power generation, only the Ganga was being targeted.