NMCG sanctions Rs.17,000 crore projects
Captains of Indian trade and industry in Mumbai have committed a support of nearly Rs.500 crores for the development of amenities like ghats, river fronts, crematoria and parks at various places along River Ganga as part of the Namami Gange Mission.
These commitments were made after Nitin Gadkari, Minister River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation, interacted with the business community in Mumbai on 7 Dec 2017.
The National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) has sanctioned projects worth about Rs.17,000 crore for Sewerage Management, Industrial Effluents Managements, Biodiversity Conservation, Solid Waste Management, Afforestation, Rural Sanitation, River Front Management, Capacity Building, Development/ Rehabilitation’ of Ghats& Crematoria etc. and above all a Communication & Public campaign to make ‘Ganga Rejuvenation’ a public movement.
In 2014, the Government has allocated about Rs.20,000 crore through the Namami Gange Programme.
During his Mumbai meeting, Gadkari has emphasised that cleaning the Ganga should become a peoples movement, informing them that a lot of private individuals from across the world have pledged support and have donated generously for the programme.
He also assured that strict laws will be brought in to check pollution of the river.
The support from the business community in Mumbai follows closely after similar success in London recently where Indian corporates committed overwhelming support for Namami Gange Mission after Gadkari led a road show.
Private funding is being sought for projects worth over Rs2,500 crore for development of ghats, crematoria, waterbodies, parks, sanitation facilities, public amenities and river front.
An indicative list of these projects have been published as a booklet and are also available on the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) website as an e- booklet.
The Government is appealing to the business community to participate in the Namami Gange Mission to clean the river by funding projects of their choice.
Gadkari outlined the implementation of the ‘programme for rejuvenation of the Ganga and its tributaries, which has been divided into three levels.
The short-term activities for immediate visible impact include river surface cleaning and modernization of ghats and crematoria.
The medium-term activities to be implemented within five years include municipal sewage management, biodiversity conservation, afforestation, Ganga gram, industrial effluent management, water quality monitoring and rural sanitation.
Long-term activities to be implemented within ten years include adequate flow of water, improved efficiency of surface irrigation and increased water use efficiency .
U.P Singh, Secretary, Ministry of Water Resources said 113 ghats and 52 crematoria are under various stages of progress at a cost of Rs.626.57 crores. fii-news.com
