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 The GAP was subsequently withdrawn in 2000.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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