Tripura CM Biplab Deb claims ducks increase oxygen level in water bodies

Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb. Photo: Twitter

NEW DELHI: Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb on Monday sparked another controversy after he said that ducks automatically increase oxygen levels in water bodies. Deb said ducks recycle water when they swim, raising the oxygen level in water bodies. “When ducks swim in water, the oxygen level automatically increases in the water body,” The Indian Express quoted Deb as saying. “It [oxygen] gets recycled. Fish in the water will get more oxygen. They also benefit from the bird droppings. Thus, pisciculture will benefit and fish will grow faster, that too in a completely organic way.” Deb, who was addressing a gathering during a boat race programme held at Rudrasagar Lake on Monday evening, said that his government was planning to distribute 50,000 ducklings to villagers whose homes are near water bodies. Deb has landed in several controversies through his remarks, including a claim on the use of the Internet and satellite during the Mahabharata era and a comment that the 1997 Miss World, Diana Hayden, was not worthy of being crowned a beauty queen. Although Deb later regretted the comment on Hayden, controversies continue to hound him. Deb had once suggested that Gautam Buddha had "walked on foot across India, Burma, Japan, Tibet and other countries". His controversial statements have drawn criticism from media, twitterati, intellectuals and political adversaries. He went on to claim that civil engineers should join the civil services but not mechanical engineers. He asked unemployed youths to earn money by milking cows and rearing pigs and poultry instead of running after government jobs.