Namami Gange gathers steam - 231 rejuvenation projects being launched simultaneously

At last Namami Gange appears to be gathering steam. It was one of the ambitious programs of the Modi government and, 231 projects are being announced simultaneously to begin execution of the Ganga rejuvenation at 104 locations spread across five river basin states. These are Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal. Also, along its tributary Yamuna in Haryana and Delhi.
This has been reported in timesofindia.indiatimes.com dated 7 July 2016.

These projects are worth over Rs 2,000 crore and involve modernization and redevelopment of 'ghats' and crematoriums, development of sewage infrastructure, afforestation, plantation of medicinal plants, drains, interceptors, trash skimmers and conservation of biodiversity to ensure clean and free flow of water in the River Ganges.
As Uma Bharati, the minister in-charge of this massive task has explained - it is a historic moment. The first phase would be over in October 2016 and, the second phase will be completed two years later. The program is entirely funded by the Centre, but work is being done with the cooperation of the concerned states.
These projects are in addition to the big projects involving the setting up of new sewage treatment plants (STPs) in various cities of UP, Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal.


Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org

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Ganga clean up mission gets a boost with Army men standing guard

Very soon, a dirty and polluted Ganga would be history because the task of maintaining vigil over its holy waters would be shared by Army men - they will warn people against dirtying the River Ganga and would create awareness among the people about the demerits of polluting the holy river. The Army men would also carry out plantation drives on its banks.
The Ganga cleaning authorities have hired a battalion of the Indian Army for a period of five years for undertaking this task. Subsequently, three more battalions would be added later.
This has been reported in timesofindia.indiatimes.com dated 4 January 2016.

The Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation have set up a Ganga Task Force through Army battalions and they will keep vigil on whoever throws waste in Ganga. Moreover, these Army men would be contact point for the common man in case they have information regarding any industrial unit discharging waste into the river.
The first Army battalion would be stationed at Allahabad Cantonment. At a later date, this battalion will be replaced by the ministry's own team comprising mainly ex-servicemen who reside in villages on the banks of the Ganga.
Incidentally, the Ganga Rejuvenation ministry would be spending around Rs 75 crore on one battalion that will be headed by an officer of the rank of a colonel. The Army would be given funds of Rs 300 crore over the next five years against the four battalions.
It has been clarified that these men would not be policing, rather they will act a watchdogs and keep vigil on the affluent discharging industrial units. They will receive complaints against anyone who is polluting the river. These personnel would be deployed along the 2,625-Km stretch of the river from Gaumukh in Uttarakhand to Ganga Sagar in West Bengal.
(Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org)


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Namami Gange faces hurdles in Kanpur – clean-up of the Ganga needs experts of IITs

#NarendraModi #UmaBharti #Namamigange #IITRoorkee Clean-up of the Ganga to give it the looks of the Thames or the Danube or the Hudson is a noble intention but, given the Indian culture and mindset, it may take centuries. The National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) has zeroed in on one of the major culprits which is Kanpur.
This has been reported in timesofindia.indiatimes.com dated 22 May 2015.

The effluent that is discharged from this city is enormous - one of the drains is Sisamau Nala which discharges the highest amount of untreated sewage (138 MLD) into the river. And, the worst part is that it passes through heavily populated and congested areas.
Relocating this vast population to make way for a Sewage Treatment Plant STP is a major challenge and, for this, experts of IIT Roorkee are being roped in. The study would take time and, till such time a solution is found, the effluent will continue to be discharged into the Ganga.
Incidentally, till now, an amount of Rs 4,168 crore has been spent in the past 29 years but no result is visible. This project is a special one for Prime Minister Narendra Modi and he has assigned the task to Uma Bharti for close follow-up and implementation. Let us hope that Ganga becomes as clean as the Thames or the Danube or the Hudson and tourists can enjoy a ride and, even commute to and from cities situated on its banks.
(Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org)

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Ganga Action Plan – a pet project that keeps surfacing only to get drowned

#GangaActionPlan #NamamiGanga #opendefecation #pollution The NDA government of the day appears to be serious about the clean Ganga mission that once upon a time be used to be known as the Ganga Action Plan and has now been revived after 28-years and renamed as Namami Ganga Project with an initial allocation of Rs 2,037 crores.
In order to prove its seriousness to the project, the drinking water and sanitation ministry has asked five state governments to submit their detailed action plan by April 15. Through this move, it would be ensured that the state governments indicate their commitment to improve sanitation along river Ganga as a part of the clean Ganga mission. It should not remain only on the paper.

It may be recalled that the ‘Ganga Action Plan or GAP was a program that was launched in January 1986 to reduce the pollution load on the river. But the efforts to decrease the pollution level in the river were unsuccessful even after spending Rs 9017 million’ as indicated in this reference. The GAP was subsequently withdrawn in 2000.
No one knows for sure how many crores of rupees would have actually been swallowed up by the project to clean the Ganga under the GAP in order to give it the look of the Thames or the Danube. The fact remains that Ganga continues to be the same old Ganga that carries corpses of humans, animals and flowers that are offered to please the hundreds of Gods and Goddesses who reside in the innumerable villages, towns and cities along its route.
This plan now envisages that the governments of the states through the Ganga flows, namely Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal, should submit the details of targets and achievements in areas including building of individual household toilets and number of open defecation villages.
On a rough estimate, there are a total of 1,657 gram panchayats involved in 253 blocks of 53 districts that are adjoining the Ganga – these are to be made open defecation free on priority. The breakdown is - Uttar Pradesh has a maximum of 959 such gram panchayats, Bihar has 309 while there are 224 are in West Bengal.
Those who know how the government works will realize that these demands are to prepare the grounds for excuses and delays. Wonder why there is no mention of controlling the pollution caused by flow of industrial wastes into the waters of the Ganga.

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Supreme Court seeks verifiable progress on the 30-year-old Ganga cleanup plan

#Ganga #Gangarejuvenation #GangaActionPlan In his enthusiasm to leave his imprints on the sands of time, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced several high profile projects – one of these was the rejuvenation of the Ganga. He has even appointed a full time Minister Uma Bharati to keep track of the progress.
It may be recalled that cleaning of the holy river Ganga had been taken up during the previous regime of Congress and UPA. It was a similar mission and was called the Ganga Action Plan. But, even though several million cusecs of water has flown down the mighty river since then, there has been no tangible progress.
As per reports, the Narendra Modi government had submitted to the court a blueprint of short, medium and long term measures that would involve thousands of crore of investment to restore the glory of the holy river. As a part of the action plan, the Centre had identified 118 towns on the bank of Ganga as the first target to achieve total sanitation including water waste treatment and solid waste management.
Moreover, it was expected that the consortium of seven IITs would address the issue relating to almost 100 km-long eco-sensitive zone ranging from Gomukh to Uttarkashi. The ultimate objective was the rejuvenation of the 2,500 km long river.
The Supreme Court has, therefore, asked for a fresh response of the government about the steps that it has taken to implement the stage-wise projects for cleaning the Ganga in the states of Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal. The SC has assigned a time frame of six weeks for submission of the progress.

Ganga clean up mission – 108 dead bodies accumulate in the waters of the River Ganges in Unnao in just 3 months

#GangaActionPlan #Unnao #NarendraModi #GangaBachao Reports indicate that 108 dead bodies are found flowing down the Ganga. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced top priority to clean up the River Ganges or Ganga but, given the mindset and superstitious beliefs of Indians, the task would be a really difficult one.
The incident in the Pariyar Ghat in Unnao, UP, has shocked everyone and, it is understood from district officials that these are bodies of people who have been victims of some epidemic. The dead bodies are being scavenged by stray dogs and birds.
The worst part is that the bodies had been piling up at the spot over the last three months and threats are posed to those who are residing in nearby areas. The fears of water contamination is very much real and, since the Sankranti festival is a few days away, people would go to the River to take bath.
River Ganges carries the tag of Holy River and, hence, a section of people believe that victims of unnatural deaths should get a final resting place in the waters of the Ganga.
There had been the Ganga Action Plan of the previous governments earlier and crores of rupees had, supposedly, been spent to clean up the waters. The Modi government has modified it and created the Ganga Bachao andolan and Prime Minister Modi has given an additional phillip to the project by adopting the city of Varanasi on the banks of the river. Plenty of ambitious plans have been drawn up to give a new look to the River Ganges. But – from the looks of it, it is going to be an uphill and nearly impossible task.