Climate Change Community

Water Community

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Query: Ensuring Sustainability of River Ganga - Experiences; Advice

Compiled by Ramesh Jalan, Resource Person & Moderator and Jai Kumar Gaurav, Research Associate – on behalf of Climate Change Community and Sunetra Lala,

Moderator – on behalf of Water Community.

Issue Date: 13 July 2012

From Lalit Joshi, Ganga Sewa Mission, New Delhi Posted 07 June 2012

I am associated with the Ganga Seva Mission a nationwide movement to ensure uninterrupted

free and natural flow, clean, pollution-free, flowing Ganga. According to the WWF report “World’s Top 10 Rivers at Risk” the river Ganga is amongst the top five polluted rivers of the world. The

river is being utilized at several locations for hydropower generation that has impacted environmental flows, substantially manipulated hydrologic regimes and has led to water losses

through evaporation from reservoirs. Water from the river is diverted for fossil-fuel and nuclear

based power plants and other industries that require water in large quantities. The urban areas along the river also divert water for domestic use.

The 29 cities and 70 towns along the Ganga River have a population of around 400 million people

and a very limited amount of sewage produced in these cities is treated before disposal in the

Ganga. In addition polluted effluents from industries and power plants are also diverted to the river.

It is an alarming situation that about 70% of the water flowing in the Ganga is from the Gangotri

glacier, which is melting at an accelerated rate due to climate change, and consequently within a few decades the revered Ganga River will become a seasonal river that flows only during the

rainy season.

The Ganga Action Plan (GAP) launched in 1985 to clean up the river in selected areas by

installing sewage treatment plants and imposing fines on polluting industries has achieved rather limited success, and the pollution levels as well as other challenges facing the Ganga have

accentuated.

There are several examples of improvements in the water quality of rivers across the world. The

Thames River in United Kingdom has improved significantly since river monitoring was initiated in 1963. The City of London Pollution Control Plants treat the entire sewage generated. The United

States has controlled pollution in rivers by regulating industries and developing sewage treatment

plants. By learning from successful examples, there is a need to device programmes for cleaning the Ganga and tackling the adverse impacts of climate change.

In order to highlight the above issues, we are organizing a high level roundtable on 14-15 July,

2012 and would like to discuss issues which are most critical for sustenance of the river Ganga.

Therefore, we urge members of the Climate Change Community and the Water Community to provide inputs on the following issues:

What are the major themes that can be covered under the intended objectives of the

proposed roundtable to preserve the social, cultural and spiritual importance of the river Ganga?

What is the strategy that needs to be adopted to make this initiative more interactive and

action-oriented? What other activities will add value to this initiative? Please share examples of local, national or international initiatives related to reducing

pollution, maintaining flows and ensuring sustainability of rivers? How can citizens, NGOs and the corporate sector contribute to reducing pollution in the

river Ganga, and ensure its sustainability?

The inputs provided by members will be utilized in formulating the themes of the roundtable and

strengthen this much needed initiative. The contribution of members will be appropriately acknowledged.

Responses were received, with thanks, from

1. Neelima Garg, Uttarakhand Jal Sansthan, Dehradun, Uttarakhand (Response1,

Response2)

2. Rahul Banerjee, Khedut Mazdoor Chetna Sangath, Indore, Madhya Pradesh 3. Surendra Kumar Yadav, CCS University, Meerut, Uttar Pradesh

4. Narendra Baduni, Agricultural Finance Corporation Ltd., New Delhi 5. Pavitra Singh, Peoples Science Institute, Dehradun, Uttarakhand (Response1,

Response2) 6. Atal Behari Sharma, Terre des Hommes (Germany) I P, Pune, Maharashtra 7. Ravi Nitesh, Mission Bhartiyam, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh

8. Ranabir Dey, IIT Bombay, Mumbai, Maharashtra

9. Himanshu Thakkar, South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers & People, Delhi

(Response1, Response2)

10. Ved Prakash Sharma, TERI, New Delhi 11. J.P.Maithani, Alaknanda Ghaati Shilpi (AAGAAS) Federation, Pipalkoti, Chamoli,

Uttarakhand (Response1, Response2, Response3) 12. M. Jahangir, Drinking Water-Pakistan Google Group, Islamabad, Pakistan

13. Onkar Mittal, Society for Action in Community Health (SACH), New Delhi

(Response1, Response2, Response3) 14. Rama Rauta, Save Ganga Movement, National Women’s Organization, Pune,

Maharashtra 15. Ashok Garg, New Delhi

16. Swayamprabha Das, New Delhi

17. Sourya Das, IIT Kharagpur, Kharagpur, West Bengal 18. Anshuman Tripathi, National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC) Limited,

Dantewada, Chhattisgarh (Response1, Response2) 19. N. K. Agarwal, Dehradun, Uttarakhand

20. Toki Blah, ICARE, Shillong, Meghalaya

21. Suraiya Tabassum, Positive Community Impact (PCI) India, New Delhi

22. Muhammad Mukhtar Alam, Centre for Ecological Audit, Social Inclusion and Governance, New Delhi (Response1, Response2, Response3)

23. Ramakrishna Nallathiga, National Institute of Construction Management And Research (NICMAR), Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh

24. Anil Gupta, Consumer India, New Delhi

25. Kanchan Chopra, Institute of Economic Growth, New Delhi 26. Salahuddin Saiphy, Institute of Rural Research and Development, Gurgaon,

Haryana (Response1, Response2) 27. Suman Sahai, Gene Campaign, New Delhi (Response1, Response2)

28. Janak Daftari, Jalsangrah, Mumbai, Maharashtra 29. Shiv Narayan Sidh, Government College Gairsain, Chamoli, Uttarakhand

30. Ramesh Jalan, UNDP, New Delhi (Response1, Response2)

31. B.Surendran, Indian Youth Climate Network (IYCN), New Delhi 32. Rajesh Shah, Peer Water Exchange, Bangalore, Karnataka

33. Sunanda Reddy, CARENIDHI, New Delhi 34. Jai Kumar Gaurav, UNDP, New Delhi

35. Prasoon Shukla, Dr. Brijendra Swaroop (P.G.) College, Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh

36. Ashok Madan, Unnat Bharat Society, New Delhi 37. Prabhat Dabral, New Delhi*

38. H. S. Sharma, Sobha Sariya Engineering College, Sikar, Rajasthan* 39. S D Limaye, Ground Water Institute (NGO), Pune, Maharashtra*

40. Devendra Sahai, Global Warming Reduction Centre (GWRC), New Delhi* 41. Nidhi Prabha Tewari , Democracy Connect, New Delhi*

*Offline Contribution

Further contributions are welcome!

Summary of Responses Comparative Experiences Related Resources Responses in Full

Summary of Responses

River Ganga is considered the lifeline of India as it fulfills several economic, social and spiritual

needs of millions living in its basin. With a length of 2526 km it is the longest river in India. The

river has been facing adverse impacts of increase in population, pollution, development of hydro projects for irrigation, power generation etc..

The government of India launched the Ganga Action Plan (GAP) in 1985 to minimize pollution in

the river and to ensure its sustainability. It set up Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs) with a

treatment capacity of 869 MLD which were completed in March 2000. As it was not sufficient to treat all the sewage, GAP II was approved in stages between 1993 to 1996.

Considering the shortcomings in the approach followed in GAP, government constituted the

National Ganga River Basin Authority (NGRBA) in 2009. It is a planning, financing, monitoring and coordinating body of the centre and the states. However significant efforts are required to

ensure sustainability of the river in the following specific areas:

Restricting Development of Dams and Hydro Power Projects:

A comprehensive water use policy for suitable allocation of water resources is needed in India as dams and hydro projects are adversely impacting biodiversity, ecosystem

services of river Ganga and reducing availability of drinking water for local communities.

It has been highlighted that planned hydro-power projects may dry up the river en-route

to the Badrinath and Kedarnath shrines. The Vishnuprayag is already dry due the 400 MW Vishnuprayag project. It has been recommended by several experts and institutions

to restrict development of Hydro projects in the region.

The need to focus on the requirements of local communities in decision making regarding

development of hydro projects in the Ganga river basin is required considering the adverse impacts of these projects on sustainable livelihoods.

Maintaining Environmental Flows in Rivers:

Credible assessment of the amount of freshwater the river needs to have round the year adequate flow is required and compliance can be ensured only by involving the local

people in ensuring compliance.

With increasing number of dams being planned, it is essential to conduct Cumulative Impact Assessment (CIA) of cascade of dams. The Narmada Bachao Andolan was one of

the earliest movements to raise the issue of cumulative impacts of dams on a single

river.

Sewage and Waste Water Treatment Plants:

According to Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) 38,254 Millions Liter Per Day (MLD)

sewage is generated while only 11,787 MLD or 35% is being treated with a capacity gap of 26,467 MLD. Therefore it is vital to develop sufficient STPs capacity in India.

Technical solutions including watertight interceptor sewer systems and Advanced

Integrated Wastewater Oxidation Pond System (AIWPS) could be considered in case of

new STPs.

Although industries have individual Effluent Treatment Plant (ETP) there is limited monitoring and companies discharge their effluent without treatment into the river

Ganga. Regular monitoring of waste water treatment in industries is crucial.

Decentralized Sewage Treatment:

A decentralized mechanism for waste water or sewage treatment to avoid its disposal

into the river Ganga could be considered. Initiative of Khedut Mazdoor Chetna Sangath, Indore, Madhya Pradesh in recharging of waste and storm water in a house could be

replicated.

An innovative product Biosanitiser that could be utilized to treat sewage in a

decentralized manner needs to be promoted.

Coping with Power Deficit:

STPs in Haridwar and several other cities are not operational due to low voltage and

power outages. There is a need to utilize systems that require no or minimum power.

Implementation of Regulation Regarding Water Pollution:

The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act 1974 has provisions for a penalty of

up to three months in prison and Rs 10,000 fine for any individual or institution found guilty of releasing polluted water into the environment. There is a need to strictly

implement the Water Act.

There is a need for regulation to restrict disposal of solid waste in the river Ganga and avoid littering on the banks of the river.

The possibility of establishing an independent fast track Judiciary similar to Lokpal to deal with cases related to pollution of rivers could be explored.

It is important to enable central government authorities to be proactive in protection of

the national river and analogous to the ‘Prevention of Insults to National Honor Act’ for

the national flag and anthem, there could be an act for the national river Ganga.

Policy instrument of tradable permits for reducing pollution could be explored as they have been successful in reducing pollution in other countries.

Avoiding Pollution Due to Religious and Cultural Activities:

Although less than 10% pollution in the river Ganga is due to diffused sources including flowers, ashes, bodies, ritual and cultural activity there is a need to restrict such activities

and adopt alternatives.

Public Private Partnership (PPP) Models for management of ghats and avoiding pollution

through cultural activities could be explored.

Awareness Creation and Citizen Involvement:

It is crucial to develop Information, Education and Communication (IEC) material and

programs for behavioral change amongst communities to ensure sustainability of the river Ganga.

Engaging women and youth in activities for ensuring sustainability of the river Ganga

would be highly beneficial.

Collaborating with NGOs and other existing initiatives would play a pivotal role in

enhancing the impact of civil society initiatives to save the Ganga. The mission could consider collaborating with Save Ganga Campaign; Sankat Mochan Foundation; Friends

of Ganges etc.

Distribution of awareness pamphlets emphasizing the need for saving Ganga is required

along with guidance regarding possible contribution of citizens towards this mission.

A list of industries and their owners responsible for polluting the Ganga could be prepared and suggestion could be sent to them to minimize their role in polluting the

river. If they don't accept the suggestions, then protests can be organized at their offices.

Citizens could be involved in reporting of polluting activities through SMS web platforms etc.. Hotspots can be highlighted on a map and daily analysis can be published.

Afforestation:

There has been considerable deforestation in the Himalayan region due to development of hydro power projects. According to the Comptroller and Auditor General of India

report plantation activity was highly deficient, as 38 % of hydro projects reported hardly any plantation.

There is a need for afforestation projects in the region. A leading mountaineer & social

activist along with her group has successfully planted and maintained a green cover of

native tree species in the region.

Effective Solid Waste Management:

Due to absence of sustainable Municipal Solid Waste Management Plans in cities, in

several cases municipal solid waste is disposed in the river Ganga leading to pollution.

There is a need for awareness creation regarding proper disposal of municipal solid waste to ensure sustainability of the river Ganga. For example ICARE a Civil Society

Organization is spearheading a movement to create awareness regarding management of city waste to prevent pollution of rivers.

Promoting Low Carbon Lifestyles and Energy Efficiency:

It is possible to reduce the demand for energy through energy efficiency and avoid construction of dams. Pollution of rivers could also be reduced in case citizens adopt low

carbon lifestyles and generate less waste.

In conclusion it needs to be highlighted that government, private sector, civil society and citizens

have to collaborate to prevent pollution and ensure sustainability of the Ganga. Adopting a Basin wide river management approach is required and it is imperative to consider the priorities of all

stakeholders to ensure equity in water resource allocation.

Comparative Experiences

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Subject, Location if applicable (from Name, Organization, Location) Description: What they found; what they did; what was the result. Limit: 5 lines

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Subject, Location if applicable (from Name, Organization, Location) Description: What they found; what they did; what was the result. Limit: 5 lines

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Related Resources

Recommended Documentation

Recommended Contacts and Experts

Recommended Organizations and Programmes

Recommended Communities and Networks

Recommended Portals and Information Bases

Recommended Tools and Technologies

Recommended Training Courses

Recommended Upcoming Events

Related Consolidated Replies

Responses in Full

Neelima Garg, Uttarakhand Jal Sansthan, Dehradun, Uttarakhand

I think this issue is of great significance presently.

First of all, the cremation of a dead body at the banks of Ganga or even casting the ashes of the

deceased in its water needs to be stopped with immediate effect.

Secondly, disposal of sewage/ industrial waste should not be allowed.

Rahul Banerjee, Khedut Mazdoor Chetna Sangath, Indore, Madhya Pradesh

The problem of pollution of water sources not only on the surface but also underground due to the release of untreated sewage and waste water as also solid waste into the environment has

become very serious. So far this problem is sought to be addressed through centralized systems

which involve carrying away the sewage and waste water through underground pipes to a sewage treatment plant or for solid waste to be carried away by trucks for treatment at a waste

dump.

However, the problem with these centralized waste disposal and treatment systems in a poor country like India is that they require huge resources to install. Experience has shown that these

resources are very difficult to recover from the citizens and so they have to be provided by the

Government from its tax revenue. Since Governments in India both central and state have a very low tax collection efficiency ( total tax to GDP ratio is about 17% whereas it should be at least

30%) therefore the resources for waste collection and treatment are very limited. The result is that the waste collection, disposal and treatment systems are all under-designed initially to cut

the capital costs and then they are not run and maintained properly to cut operation and

maintenance costs. Not surprisingly then even after the expenditure of thousands of crores of

rupees all major rivers, water bodies and underground aquifers in this country are severely polluted.

Consequently we have to seek decentralized solutions. Waste water and sewage must be treated

and either recycled or reused at source. Whether it is an individual household or it is a hotel or

government office or railway station or industrial unit, it must be ensured that each of these treats and either recycles or recharges the waste water completely.

In fact the use of the recycled water for flushing toilets and gardening will considerably reduce

the potable water demand and save on costs there also ( The CPHEEO manual of 1995 has it that of the 135 lpcd standard urban water demand 63 lpcd is for flushing toilets and gardening). The

technology for this is quite cheap and it is easily implementable. The Water (Prevention and

Control of Pollution) Act 1974 provides for a penalty of up to three months in prison and Rs 10,000 fine for any individual or institution found guilty of releasing polluted water into the

environment. This needs to be strictly implemented and then people will certainly take care of their waste water.

Roughly 60% of the urban population can easily undertake these decentralized measures. The Government should then be left with the responsibility of funding the 40% poor population who

are not economically capable of doing this and this cost will be much less than the huge capital and O&M costs involved in installing and running centralized systems as at present.

The storm water also should be recharged into the ground in a decentralized manner at the

individual level. Once again the Government should be left with the responsibility of recharging

the storm water in public places like roads and parks and in habitations of the poor. This will not only do away with the perennial problem of water logging of streets in the monsoons but also

augment the availability of ground water.

Regarding solid waste too decentralized systems should be used. The waste should be

segregated and the green waste should be composted at the point of source for use as fertilizers for growing creepers which can then cover the roofs and walls of buildings and reduce the

temperature inside and so cut down on the use of ACs and Coolers. The plastic waste can be collected by waste collectors and then either recycled or used for incineration in cement kilns

which will bring down the energy requirements of these kilns.

We have a combination of all these operating at our office in Indore and here is a link to a video

that describes this – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQhZsRb5VM8&feature=channel&list=UL

Therefore, through decentralized waste treatment and disposal involving community participation

not only will our surface and ground water be freed of pollution but a considerable portion of our

potable water supply and cooling energy demand will also be met leading to a substantial solution of the climate change problem. Thus the proposed Round Table should focus on

decentralized waste management and build up a consensus among all stakeholders for implementing this if necessary with the strict implementation of the punitive provisions of the

Water Act, 1974.

Surendra Kumar Yadav, CCS University, Meerut, Uttar Pradesh

I fully agree with suggestions of Neelima Garg.

Moreover, there is need for:

(1) More emphasis on Information, Education and Communication (IEC) among community/ local

people for human behaviour change about sanitation of Ganga (2) Even treatment of domestic sewage is required before releasing it for streams/ river

(3) There must be huge penalty/ fine on people who are polluting the Ganga, through some provisions/ Act of Parliament, and this needs to be done not only for Ganga but for all other

rivers in the country.

Narendra Baduni, Agricultural Finance Corporation Ltd., New Delhi

The issue raised by Lalit Joshi is really a valid one and needs to be taken up seriously as it concerns 400 million people for whom this is a Jeevandayani. Mr Joshi has mentioned that the

maximum water flowing in Ganga is from Gangotri Glacier and the rate of receding of Gangotri

glacier everybody knows very well. Thus the first measures must be control the receding rate of Gangotri Glacier and it will only be possible when we would first focus on improving the

environment surrounding the Gangotri Glacier.

If you walk towards Gaumuk from Gangotri the first stoppage is Chirbasa. The place got this

name as once there was good forest of High Himalayan Pine locally called “Chir” (Pinus Wallichiana). The next stoppage around 5 km ahead from this place is Bhojbasa as there was

also a good forest of Bhojpatra (Betula utalis). Both places have got their names due to existence of plant species which were grown there profusely at that time. When I first visited Gaumukh

during 1993 there was only one tree of Bhojpatra along the route to Gaumuk and upper side of the Lal Baba Dharmsala. I again visited Gaumukh during 1998 but could not trace a single tree of

Bhopatra at Bhojbasa which it was famous for.

“Saving Bhojpatra for saving Gaumuk” with this key motto the efforts of Ms Harswanti Bisht a

leading mountaineer & social activist and her group made is praise worthy. Ms Bisht and her associates have now become successful in creating some greenery in the Chirbasa as well as

Bhojwasa area. The State Government is also taking up some measures for protection of this

precious asset but still there is a lot to do.

My first suggestion is to keep focus first on reviving the area between Rishikesh to Gaumuk. In first phase more stress need to be given in afforestation of suitable species in the slopes from

Harsil to Gamukh and in next phase from Uttarkashi to Harsil. Here also we need to adopt top to

bottom approach which is commonly applied in watershed development projects.

Why I am highlighting the need to first to improve the situation first at source? Because if the rate of depletion of forest in higher Himalayas and receding rate of Gangotri Glacier continues

than there is no need to take measures for making Ganga pollution free. It will only be possible when Ganga exists. If Ganga becomes Saraswati at their birth place than rest of measure we

think or we propose to be taken up having no relevance.

I agree with Neelima Garg on stopping cremation at the bank of Ganga. It is not an easy job but

if we are able to convince our Dharmgurus and able to create awareness among people than it will also give some relief to the Ganga.

Pavitra Singh, Peoples Science Institute, Dehradun, Uttarakhand

Are there any ways to work jointly to save Gangaji? Almost every day a meeting / round-table discussion is conducted but what is its impact on our policy makers? Dr. G.D. Agrawal did a lot to

save the Ganga, at that time where were the other Ganga well-wishers? Is Ganga now the only

matter for Meetings and discussions?

Point load/pollution (Industries and Domestic and municipal waste water discharge) contribute more than 90% of total pollution of Gangaji, and less than 10% pollution of Gangaji is by

diffused sources like flowers, Ashes, bodies and other ritual and cultural activity. So kindly now decide what steps we should take and prioritize them. Is it advisable to stop the 90% pollution or

the balance 10%?

Atal Behari Sharma, Terre des Hommes (Germany) I P, Pune, Maharashtra

Greetings!!

What are the scientific reasons behind the suggestions of Neelima Garg "the cremation of a dead

body at the banks of Ganga or even casting the ashes of the deceased in its water needs to be

stopped with immediate effect."

You may be aware that large Trans National Companies (TNC's) in water business are eyeing

Indian rivers and water resources for commercial exploitation. Since last three decades these companies are out to discourage holy people who have faith and reverend the rivers as mothers

blaming them for the pollution of the rivers.

The main reason for dying of Holy river Ganga is dams and other obstructions created on the natural flow of the river.

Neelima Garg, Uttarakhand Jal Sansthan, Dehradun, Uttarakhand (Response2)

I think this issue is of great significance presently.

First of all, the cremation of a dead body at the banks of Ganga or even casting the ashes of the deceased in its water needs to be stopped with immediate effect.

Secondly, disposal of sewage/ industrial waste should not be allowed.

In summer season, due to low voltage (370 volt) sewer treatment plants in Haridwar are not working and sewage is being disposed in the river without treatment. Because of low voltage, the

plants have to be closed in between due to excessive heating and 25 Million liters per day (MLD)

sewage is disposed into the Ganga daily without treatment.

Ravi Nitesh, Mission Bhartiyam, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh

Save Ganga is a campaign that has become the voice of people in this country.

In fact, I agree and support the campaign, however if we will look into this whole campaign, we will find that there are so many people who are campaigning for this objective just with their

religious faith. They believe that the Ganga is a river that is sacred for hindus. This faith only makes the issue more serious and provides more support to the campaign but I feel that in the

longer term it can harm not only the campaign, but to the motive of awareness to prevent

climate change and pollution.

It was also observed that many villagers in Uttarakhand have protested against Mr G D Agarwal because the villagers wanted to get electricity and for that they were ready to have a dam.

Though the behavior of villagers is not right but it should be observed that alternate ways to produce electricity should have been considered.

My inputs are:

What are the major themes that can be covered under the intended objectives of the proposed roundtable to preserve the social, cultural and spiritual importance of the

river Ganga?

One major theme that should be covered is to ensure participation of common man in this initiative. What is the strategy that needs to be adopted to make this initiative more interactive

and action-oriented? What other activities will add value to this initiative? Strategy should focus to bring all religion on one stage with a common motive to save a river of

national importance. It can include: Distribution of awareness pamphlets with bullet points towards: Why saving Ganga is

crucial and how a common man can contribute to this mission. This mission needs to involve other NGOs and activists to spread the message.

A Ganga Journey for people from all religions could be organized.

A list of industries and their owners responsible for polluting the Ganga could be

prepared and a list of suggestion could be sent to them to minimize their role in polluting the

river. If they don't accept the suggestions, then protests can be organized at their offices. Please share examples of local, national or international initiatives related to reducing pollution, maintaining flows and ensuring sustainability of rivers? Mission Bhartiyam, along with some other organizations is planning to start a campaign to reduce

river pollution. This initiative will also provide support to save the Ganga as well.

We, at Mission Bhartiyam, believe that spending crores of rupees in cleaning of Ganga will not be fruitful till the challenge of preventing pollution of small rivers that are tributaries of Ganga is

addressed. These small rivers are polluted and contribute to the extreme level of pollution in Ganga. We also believe that these rivers are important for local culture, history, geography

and trade. Therefore we need to focus on small rivers, also.

How can citizens, NGOs and the corporate sector contribute to reducing pollution in

the river Ganga, and ensure its sustainability? Citizens: Through creating awareness and understanding regarding their responsibility towards

rivers.

NGOs: Through support and joint campaigns to save Ganga. Corporate: They could include activities in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programs that

contribute to reducing river pollution.

Ranabir Dey, IIT Bombay, Mumbai, Maharashtra

Good to know that our team members are well aware of the status of the Clean Ganga Mission. But few points, I like to draw your attentions to, which are as follows:

The NGRBA (National Ganga River Basin Authority) set up in 2009 had so far been able

to revise the Guidelines for Preparation of DPR for the Projects to be implemented on the

River Ganga which has hampered the work of the Consultants after incurring so much of expenditure as all the contracts are mostly success fee based. Besides, this had unnecessarily

delayed the finalization of Projects.

The Approach for the State Level Appraisal Committee and that at the Centre seems

very confusing and they need to take a call in getting the DPRs workable. The FASEP team

(Foreign Appraising Agency fromFrance) cites too many queries that the Consultants working find it difficult to answer. For example, 36 pages of comments were given for a small town

where stretch of Ganga is not even 550m.

I myself had attended one State level Review meeting where the Head, Central

Committee states that Guidelines are dynamic and it is quite understood that it will change

from time to time. Fine, but there needs to be a limit, otherwise, no Projects will take shape and in reality nothing will be implemented.

I hardly feel that in near future, there will be any action taken on the

Clean Ganga Mission.

I feel our Prime Minister should take a call as he chairs the meeting of NGRBA.

These are only the few points that percolates till the middle level and I am sure this is only a part

of the entire story. God save his own River.

Himanshu Thakkar, South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers & People, Delhi

One of the most striking descriptions of this remarkable phenomenon called the Ganga, first and foremost a river, but much more than that for many, comes from Jawaharlal

Nehru: “The Ganga, especially, is the river of India beloved of her people, round which are intertwined her memories, her hopes and her fears, her songs of triumph, her

victories and her defeats. She has been a symbol of India’s age long culture and

civilization, ever-changing, ever flowing and yet ever the same Ganga”.

The dimensions are huge: 2526 km long river is India’s longest one. The river basin is among the world’s top twenty big rivers with area of over a million sq km. In terms of number of people

staying in the basin, it is the world’s biggest with 448.3 million people in 2001 (census), likely to

be now over 529 million (in 2011, a conservative estimate) staying in the Indian part of the basin (79.3% of total basin area). The basin area includes parts of four countries, and within India 11

states (Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Delhi, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Bihar, and West Bengal).

In the Hindu religion, Ganga is an incarnation of the Goddess herself. It figures in the Vedas, the

Puranas, the Ramayan and also Mahabharat. Through out the basin the river is considered holy,

as also by millions of Indians staying beyond the basin. Almost every festival and ceremonies of the people and religions in the basin and beyond centre on the river. Culturally too the river has

great significance if we look at the popular literature, films, songs, poetry or the stories. The website of the National Ganga River Basin Authority (NGRBA) says, “Ganga drains a basin of

extraordinary variation in altitude, climate, land use, flora &fauna, social and cultural

life.Ganga has been a cradle of human civilization since time immemorial. Millions depend on this great river for physical and spiritual sustenance. People have

immense faith in the powers of healing and regeneration of the Ganga. It is arguably the most sacred river in the world and is deeply revered by the people of this country.

The River plays a vital role in religious ceremonies and rituals. To bathe inGanga is a

lifelong ambition of many who congregate in large numbers for several river centred festivals such as Kumbh Mela and numerous Snan (bath) festivals.”

However, in spite of such remarkable significance of the river for so many millions, for so long,

the river is in very bad shape. It is one of the most polluted rivers of the world when we look at rivers of comparable size. Besides the main stem of the river, most of its tributaries, including

Yamuna, Chambal, Damodar, Gomti, Kali, Khan, Kshipra, Hindon, Sone, Kosi, Betwa, Ramganga, Mahananda to name a few, are all described as grossly polluted by the various agencies like the

Central Pollution Control Board, the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests and its National

River Conservation Directorate and NGRBA.

If one were to travel down the river from the famous Char dham, namely Gangotri (the birth place of Bhagirathi, considered the source stream of the river that, Bhagirath brought to the

earth through the cross hairs of Kailash, the Shiva), Yamunotri (the birth place of Yamuna, a river that is bigger than Ganga at their confluence in Allahabad), Kedarnath (the source of Mandakini

River) or Badrinath (the source of Alaknanda River) one should be ready to face some rather

nasty surprises down the stream, including complete disappearance of the river from the face of the earth for several kilometres for most of the time during any year, at almost each of the large

hydro site or dam site. These stretches had perennial rivers before the dams and hydropower projects were built on them. Further down, there are barrages on the river at Haridwar (water

diverted to Upper Ganga Canal), Bijnor (Madhya Ganga Canal) and Narora (Lower Ganga Canal),

at Kanpur and also the dam at Farakka. In addition, every one of the 17 major tributaries has been damned several times.

It is not that the citizens and society are beyond blame. In a sense, the religious, cultural

connection of the Ganga River has been a bane since it has lead to increase in the pollution load of the river rather than reducing it. Why did they allow the river they revere, to come to this

pass? What have they done to reverse it? And can we even hope the river will have better fate or

state without making the citizens part of the process? Ultimately, the river is a mirror, or better still, a report card of what you do in its catchment.

Ved Prakash Sharma, TERI, New Delhi

The government needs to take strict actions against those polluting the Ganga and Members of Parliament can create awareness in their constituencies on protecting the river without playing

politics. Bhagirathi is the source stream of Ganga. It emanates from Gangotri Glacier at Gaumukh

at an elevation of 3,892 m (12,770 feet). Many small streams comprise the headwaters of Ganga. There are so many small towns along this path; Hotels & tourism are doing a lot of pollution from

the origin. There are no monitoring agencies to monitor the excessive pollution load.

Rapidly increasing population, rising standards of living and exponential growth of industrialization and urbanization have exposed the water resources, in general and rivers,

in particular(Rishikesh to Allahabad basically), to various forms of degradation. No monitoring of

sewage treatment plants in small towns & other cities based on the population increase and direct discharge in Ganga without treatment (from Rishikesh to Allahabad). Hotels, construction

activities, colonies should not be allowed on the banks of river. Government needs to fix protection area of river bank where no commercial activity except bathing Ghats should be

permitted. Small dams should be permitted for energy instead of large dams.

People should be aware and see what is happening in the river Ganga near Rishikesh. All the

private companies are only making money and using the Ganga like a beach and destroying the ecology by throwing Plastics, deforestation of land, hotels producing solid waste, agriculture land

being diverted for resorts etc.

Government needs to ban construction activities on Agriculture land from all towns located near

the banks of the river Ganga, in case we are keen to save the river from further deterioration.

J.P.Maithani, Alaknanda Ghaati Shilpi (AAGAAS) Federation, Pipalkoti, Chamoli,

Uttarakhand

You will be surprised to know that the Holy River Alaknanda and Bhagirathi is facing pollution from or near the source- In river Alaknanda the effluents like- Detergent, overflow of toilet pits

,polythene are visible since Mana village, Badrianthji ,Hanumanchatti, Pandukeshwar, Govind Ghaat, Marwaadi near Joshimath, Helong, Pipalkoti, Nandprayag, Chamoli, Karnprayag, Gouchar,

Rudraprayag, Shrinagar, Kirtinagar, Byasi, Koudiyala and upto Devprayag. The worst thing is that

- in Alaknanda Valley - No Nagar Palika and Nagar Panchayat have any sewage, solid waste and non-biodegradable waste treatment facility available - and an exception is now Shrinagar

Garhwal.

We observed that the community toilets of Bamani Village in Shri Badrianthji and Mana the last

village, Sulabh Toilet of Pandukeshwar, Govind Ghat, Piplakoti, Chamoli, Karnprayag, Nandprayag and few other tourist towns are polluting the tributaries of the Ganga- like Laxman Ganga, Garur

Ganga, Nandakini, Pinda and Mandkini.

Even we have seen that the few Big Hotels, ashrams are throwing the toilet pit sewage in the small Naala or water tributory in peak Monsoon - when we cannot see the sewage - during night

directly thrown in the Alaknanda. Around 4 Nagar Panchayats just dumping the Garbage in

between the river bank and Natioanl Highway no 58 which goes in to the river with monsoon rains.

In the River Valley of Bhagirathi - the river is going through the water pollution factors and facing

the pollution at Gangotri- Harsil, Gangnaani, Bhatwari, Maneri, Uttrakashi town, Joshiyada,

Dunda and Chinyalisour.

The carrying capacity of these towns goes 3-4 times more in the peak Yaatra and Tourist season- with limited infrastructure, management plan, policy and action. On the other hand the number

of Hotels, Dahbas, Ashrams and other developmental activities are not in a position to take care

of this problem- because- they have very limited time period to earn money during the season.

On the other hand the problem increases due to negligence by the concern Department and ministry at state level as well as national level.

We have to think and plan the action - which should be practically possible to apply and accepted

to all with transparency and commitment. We can share the videos and photos related to this if

needed.

Pavitra Singh, Peoples' Science Institute, Dehradoon, Urrarakhand (Response2)

I have visited the STP of Jagjeetpur area of Haridwar having the capacity of 27+18 MLD only,

while the waste water generated in the city is about 90MLD. The actual treatment capacity of the 27 MLD and 18 MLD STPs is lower than the designed capacity and more than 55 MLD untreated

water is being mixed in the treated water and then disposed off in Gangaji.

The BOD of the Raw untreated sewage ranges to 130-180mg/l, BOD of treated sewage (35 MLD)

was 20-35mg/l while BOD of the mixed effluent ranges to 90-110mg/l during the Feb 2012. So claiming that low voltage is the problem in the summer is not justifying the issue.

Second thing they (Operating consultants) are claiming that the gas generated by the sludge is

sufficient enough to operate the plant for 12-15 hours in a day and the Voltage problem may not

be there throughout the day and nights. My conclusion is clear that the capacity of the STP is not enough and also the STPs are not working properly. .

All these mismanagement leads the Downstream Gangaji BOD to a level of 58mg/l in the right

bank at Missarpur village, 2 km downstream of the Treatment plant.

M. Jahangir, Drinking Water-Pakistan Google Group, Islamabad, Pakistan

Great effort, for a serious intervention. River pollution is a global issue more so in the developing

world. I suggest we clearly define the Ganga issues, both quality and quantity of water. There

are common problems and Ganga specific. Once we have defined and agreed, it may be easier to proceed for improvement.

For example,

Common issue: Dumping of untreated sewer

Ganga specific:

Ash disposal in the river

Onkar Mittal, Society for Action in Community Health (SACH), New Delhi (Response1)

The crisis of River Ganges may be perceived, merely as an aesthetic or spiritual issue. In reality it is much deeper than that. In the last meeting of NGRBA, PM has noted that the Holy River

Ganges may not even be having the Minimum Ecological Flow. He has also promised that the report of the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) on cumulative Environmental Impact Assessment,

will be given due consideration, while deciding the fate of the Dams on River Ganga in

Uttrakhand.

We need to begin our reflection on the River Ganges, with the challenge of multiple and competing demands on the river water, namely drinking water, irrigation and industrial use, to

name a few. These are also the most contested domains in the policy process. The national water policy gives utmost priority to drinking water needs. At the same time it also calls for

maximum use of water resources and creation of multipurpose projects on our rivers. As far as

the river's own right over its water is concerned, the draft national water policy pays a lip service to the concept of 'minimal ecological flow'. However there is no discussion in the draft national

water policy on how the multipurpose projects, the maximum use of water resources and minimum ecological flow would be reconciled in actual life.

Just to take a real life current scenario, let us consider the on going water crisis in Delhi. We have withdrawn water from Yamuna River and we have withdrawn water

from Ganga River, besides withdrawing the Ground Water for our drinking and domestic water needs. All this has not helped us to avoid the water crisis. It should be obvious to anyone that

there is no more water to withdraw from these sources-river or ground, despite all the technology and financial resources at our command. Should it, at least now, force us to bow our

head humbly and listen to those, who have been raising their voices against destroying the

natural water systems in the Aravali Hills in the name of Urbanization. Should we seriously

deliberate on the OPTION of and restoration of these natural water systems of Aravali for

meeting the water needs of Delhi? If our policy makers open the debate in that direction, it may perhaps offer some immediate solutions to meet the crisis - over a span of next 2-3 years and

may pave the way for reversing the damage to our river systems.

The same can be argued for cutting the river and making canals for irrigation use. It is well

known that the western Yamuna canal, the eastern Yamuna canal and upper and lower Ganga canals have caused salinity in the soil, destruction of the soil, and growing of

commercial crops in these areas. At the same time the agrarian crisis in these regions could not be solved. The famines continued to occur in UP after the construction of upper and

lowerGanga Canal in 1854 and 1878. Despite the Green revolution in 1966, one of the biggest farmers movement started in Ganga and Yamuna Doab in early 1990. It is said that almost 50%

of the farmers would like to give up agriculture if given a choice. That is one of the reasons for

their rush and willingness for selling the agricultural land. The question arises as to what benefits did these canal systems brought to these areas. These canals were constructed ostensibly for

famine prevention, for irrigation and for navigation. Today they are sites for land disputes and use of water for growing cities and for thermal and nuclear plants. Is there a case for a review?

It would be pertinent to make a reference to the on going PIL in Allahabad High Court on Ganga. The court has specifically asked the Government as to how it can withdraw so much water from

the river that no water is left for the river and all you can see is sand. It has directed that no more than 50% water should be withdrawn from Gangaat Narora Barrage. However who is going

to pay heed to this order. Nearly 10000 cusec water is withdrawn from Ganga at Bhimgowda Barrage at Haridwar, there is another barrage at Bijnore for Middle Ganga canal, yet another

one at Narora for Thermonuclear plant and for lower Ganga canal, then at Farrukhabad and then

at Kanpur. Practically very little Ganga water is left for Allahabad and saving grace is provided by the Yamuna river which brings water from its north flowing tributaries in Madhya Pradesh, after

getting completely depleted in Delhi.

The story of destruction of Ganges does not stop here. The Gandak, Bagmati and Kosi, the

Himalayan Tributaries of Ganga have been jacketed into embankments running into few thousand kms destroying the natural drainage of North Bihar and bringing immense miseries to

the people. The error is further compounded by construction of Farraka barrage in 70s, which has led to accumulation of silt in Ganges and has caused backpressure on the above rivers

obstructing their natural flow into the Ganges.

The idea of narrating this long story is to draw the attention of members, away, from the

relatively small, though important dimension of the pollution caused by waste water, garbage and dead bodies. The movement for the protection of river Ganges is first of all the

movement for restoration of its natural flow. The construction of large number of dams in Uttrakhand on the five tributaries of river Ganga will be the last act of the destruction of this

river. What is being euphemistically called as the 'run of the river' dams are in fact river diversion

dams coupled with impounding reservoirs. Our engineers condescendingly tell the 'activists' like us that the water is coming back to the river anyway and that they are prepared to leave some

water for the natural flow, while withdrawing the rest. I would like to humbly state that they should talk to the villagers living around the rivers to know what immense damage they cause to

the river by their acts. It is hoped that the honourable PM will give appropriate consideration to

the report of WII and the destruction which began almost two hundred years ago with forests in Himalayas and construction of Upper Ganga canal by the British will be stopped. This is the sole

purpose of Save Ganga Movements of various hues and colour at this historical moment of national introspection and resurrection.

Himanshu Thakkar, South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers & People, New Delhi

(Response2)

In NGRBA’s there is no mention of the hydel projects as its sole focus is on pollution. The problem facing the river Ganga as per the NGRBA is as given below:

“In the Ganga basin approximately 12,000 million litres per day (mld) sewage is generated, for

which presently there is a treatment capacity of only around 4,000 mld. Approximately 3000 mld of sewage is discharged into the main stem of the river Ganga from the Class I & II towns

located along the banks, against which treatment capacity of about 1000 mld has been created till date. The contribution of industrial pollution, volume-wise, is about 20 per cent but due to its

toxic and non- biodegradable nature, this has much greater significance.”

The poor state of the river has been known for pretty long now. And it is not for lack of attempts

(at least on paper) and lack of financial or technical or infrastructure resources or lack of understanding as to what are the responsible reasons and what needs to be done that the river is

in this state for so long.

The 1st phase of tackling the pollution started with the enactment of the Water pollution Act

1974, through which elaborate institutional arrangements from Central to State Pollution Boards were set up with an army of bureaucrats, buildings and laboratories, armed with significant legal

powers. However, till date we do not have a single case of a river or tributary or stream that has been claimed to be cleaned up due to the effort of any of the pollution control boards.

Having seen this failure, the then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi launched the now celebrated

Ganga Action Plan in 1985. Rajiv Gandhi, in his speech announcing Ganga Action Plan on June

14, 1986 at Dahsamedha ghat in Varanasi was quite optimistic: “Today we are beginning the program of cleaning the Ganga here – and it is our hope that through this there will

be a sewage plant built and where all the sewage will be diverted – and won’t come into the Ganga – we will get power from that also – and we will get fertilizer from it

and the power that will be required, it will make it itself.” Rajiv Gandhi was also hopeful

that the Environment Protection Act, enacted the same year of 1986, will be useful in this endeavour.

Moreover, the scheme did not attempt to learn any lessons from the failure of the earlier

Pollution Control apparatus then in existence for over a decade. The GAP continued on the

business as usual emphasis on more sewage treatment plants, pumps, pipes and such infrastructure. The official consultants to the scheme - the Thames Valley Water Authority of

England had never tackled any river that was comparable in size or complexity to any one of the seventeen tributaries of the Ganga, leave aside the whole basin. The World Bank also funded the

scheme, but it too had no track record of cleaning up any polluted river stretch in India. The Dutch government funded a ten year project to implement parts of the GAP in Kanpur without

understanding the nature of the pollutants Kanpur Rivers had and it failed in its design itself and

in 2009 it was declared that the GAP has failed to achieve its basic objectives.

In 1993 the GAP Phase II was launched, including tributaries of Ganga like the Damodar, Yamuna, Mahananda and Gomati and in Dec 1996 it was merged with the National River Action

Plan. The importance of this scheme can be gauged by the fact that the National River

Conservation Authority is chaired by the Prime Minister and includes, besides several Union Ministers, Chief Ministers of all the basin states. There are Standing monitoring and steering

committees including the highest bureaucrats from the centre and the states. While it was apparent over the years that the GAP and the RAP (River Action Plans) are failures, no credible

attempt has at any stage been undertaken to understand the reasons for failure when supervision was supposed to be from the highest quarters. The CAG has shown through several

reports how the scheme has been a failure, the latest report coming only in 2011. In the report,

echoing what SANDRP had said several years ago, the CAG said that ever since the UPA alliance came to power in 2004, there has been no meetings of either the authority headed by the PM or

the Steering committee headed by secretary of Union Environment Ministry. This is just an indication of how low priority the government has for the Rivers in general and Ganga in

particular.

In February 2009, incidentally just months before the Parliamentary elections, sensing that issue

of dams on and pollution of Ganga is becoming a hot issue, the UPA government came out with a notification on National Ganga River Basin Authority, again headed by the Prime Minister and

included some non government members. It was clear at the outset that these were symbolic gestures and within government there was absolutely no serious intent at tackling these issues.

Most importantly, like in case of earlier attempts at fresh starts in 1974, 1985, 1993 or 1996, this

time too there was no credible attempt to understand the reasons for failure in the past and address the issues related to the governance of the river.

This soon became clear when the non government members had no role in the crucial decisions

being taken by the government including decision regarding the USD 1 Billion funding from the

World Bank (the same institute that is funding Vishnugad Pipalkoti hydro project on Alaknanda river in Uttarakhand, destroying a long stretch of the river) or specific plans, programmes or

schemes. In over three years since the authority was formed, there has been just two meetings (even the agenda and minutes of these meetings are not in the public domain!).

So where is the problem? Most importantly, throughout these almost four decades of attempts at

river pollution control, the key decision makers and managers have been the Union and the state

governments, through their constituents like the Ministries of Environment and Forests, Water Resources, Urban Development, the Pollution Control Boards, the Water Quality Assessment

Authority, Urban Municipalities, etc. But none of these agencies have shown any culture of democratic, transparent, accountable, participatory functioning. However, the people whose

livelihoods, life sustaining elements are dependent on these rivers have absolutely no role at any

level in ensuring that these rivers are clean, flowing all round the year with clear water, the basic slogan of Nirmal, aviral Ganga that the Ganga campaign have been raising.

In other words, the emphasis has been solely on infrastructure (new plants, pumps, pipes) and

finance, but none at all in addressing the governance related to any of the component of the

river management regime. It is assumed that more machinery and finances will take care of the problem and there is no need to address the governance to ensure that the infrastructure

actually works as intended and decisions are appropriate, the finances are used optimally and for the right options. A simple indicator of the failure of the governance is that most of the existing

Sewage Treatment Plants do not function anywhere close to design or promised levels with respect of quality or quantity of output.

So the Ganga Campaign advocates say the river should not be connected to the sewer, but reality today is that the river is the sewer. There has been no credible assessment of the

amount of freshwater the river should have all round the year downstream from a dam, hydro project or a barrage, and none is getting released at diversion points, even for perennial rivers.

Even where the ad hoc minimum flows are stipulated, the MoEF has no credible compliance mechanism in place and they have refused to involve the local people in ensuring compliance.

New planned hydro-power projects will dry up the river en-route to the Badrinath and Kedarnath shrines, pleading that there are no pilgrims in six months! In fact the Alaknanda basin plans are

likely to destroy all the five holy prayags, if the planned schemes go ahead, one of them, the Vishnuprayag already stands destroyed due the 400 MW Vishnuprayag project.

The gap between the state of the river and what the people of India dream of (Nirmal, aviral) is only increasing. More troubling is the fact that there is no road map in sight to bridge this

distance. One has to remember that in the context of climate change, with glaciers melting, sea levels rising and monsoon patterns becoming unpredictable, the state of the river will only get

worse.

What incidentally is a river? Here is a definition we attempted:

River is a hydrological, geomorphic, ecological, biodiversity rich, landscape level system that

serves as key part of freshwater cycle, balancing dynamic, though not always continuum (e.g. discontinuity when tributaries meet a river) equilibrium between soil moisture, snowfall, rainfall,

surface water and groundwater and providing large number of social, environmental, economic,

cultural, aesthetic, religious services to the people and ecosystems all along its watershed.

Rama Rauta, Save Ganga Movement, National Women’s Organization, Pune,

Maharashtra

Protection of the Ganga, symbolizing all rivers and water bodies must be accorded highest priority in our national development process. Ultimately, we must create a new paradigm of

development for India based on Gandhian principles Truth and universal non-violence. The utility, aesthetic and religious value of the natural ecology of theGanga is invaluable.

The Ganga is the life-line of crores of our people: a naturally flowing fresh and clean Ganga (Aviral & NirmalGanga) freely and permanently meets various water

requirements of people on its banks, recharges the ground water all along its flow, improves the fertility of a lot of farmland through its silt, provides the habitat for hundreds of diverse life

forms, etc. The GANGAJAL (water of the Ganga) is traditionally claimed to have bactericidal,

health promoting, non-putrefying and purifying properties. The aesthetic and religious value of the natural ecology of theGanga is also invaluable. All great religions, explicitly or implicitly,

accept the natural eco-systems which sustain healthy life to be sacred and invaluable. We must not allow our development activities to deprive the masses the various invaluable services they

have been getting freely since ages from the Ganga and its tributaries. We must not allow, in the

name of development, our greed for wealth and lust for luxuries to deprive the masses pure air, pure water and pure natural manure which they have been getting freely from nature since

ages.

We must make the Ganga Aviral and take time bound decisive steps to make it and its tributaries completely free from (1) industrial effluents, (2) sewage of the cities and towns (3)

hazardous chemicals from agricultural run-of within a few years as our short term goal, and

make serious effort to solve the problems of eco-hostile industrialization, urbanization and population growth by trying to realize the Gandhian conceptions of village Swaraj and Swadeshi

within a few decades as our long term goal.

The highly earth quake prone, eco-fragile Uttarkhand region of the Ganga Basin must be

declared “Ecological Fragile” and its rivers “wild river” and all steps must be taken to protect them and the natural eco-systems they support. The rivers should be allowed to flow freely in

their natural paths without obstruction. The ill conceived various dam projects for hydroelectricity on the Alakananda and Mandakini which would cause massive and

permanent harm to their invaluable ecology must not be allowed. All eco-hostile activities such as construction of eco–hostile dams, mining, blasting, etc, near our national river

and its tributaries must be completely banned and implemented. We must not allow any activities

which harm to the bactericidal, health promoting, non-putrefying and purifying properties of

GANGAJAL. We must never forget that Ganga is not only the lifeline of crores of our people but also considered to be divine mother by crores of them. Efforts must also be made as soon as

possible to rectify the past mistakes as far as possible. Since the Ganga is our national river, it must be maintained close to its pristine and natural state.

Industrial effluents, hospital wastes, treated or untreated, must not be allowed to enter into the rivers and must not also be allowed to mix with the sewage, which should be converted into

valuable natural manure for organic farming: industries must treat their effluents and use only the recycled water. Sewage from the cities and towns, treated or untreated, must not also be

allowed to enter into the rivers: we must not forget that our rivers are the source of drinking water for crores of people and STPs cannot convert sewage into potable water.

Sewers must be separated from rivers and sewage must be converted into manure producing electricity in the process wherever possible. Treatment of the sewage for converting it into

natural manure through “Pond System” and “Plant Based Management of Sewage and Waste Treatment”, which are cheapest and durable and need least management and electricity, should

be preferred wherever possible. Our National laboratories of CSIR- NEERI, Nagapur, NBRI,

Lucknow, ITRC, Lucknow, CLRI, Chennai, etc. - along with our other prominent research centers of environmental science/ engineering of the IITs, BHU, etc. should network and collaborate with

each other to play the central role to clean the Ganga and its tributaries within five years with the help of a culture of GPPP (Government, Private, Public Participation.) They have the knowledge

and skill to clean our national river within 4 or 5 years if they get the full support and cooperation of the government. Our scientists, not the bureaucrats, should play the central role in deciding

the technology to be used to clean the rivers .

Entry of hazardous chemicals from agricultural run-of into the rivers must be prevented through

promotion of organic farming in a massive way. Methods of irrigation needs to be changed keeping in view of the E-flow requirements of our national river.

There should be disincentives in the form of proper fines to the states in the Ganga basin in proportion to the quantity and quality of pollution a state has added to the river. There should be

a monitoring mechanism to regularly monitor the water quality of the Ganga at the entry and exit points of each state.

Union Ministry of Environment and Forests must take the full responsibility of the protection of our national river: the central government authorities must acquire powers

to overrule the state government authorities with reference to protection of the national river. Analogous to the ‘Prevent of Insults to National Honor Act’ for the national flag

and anthem, there should be an act for the national river Ganga.

We must replace the present extremely eco-hostile, out-and-out consumerist and inherently

unsustainable self–destructive culture of development of unlimited desires and cut throat competition for getting more and more wealth for their satisfaction, by an ethical culture of

contentment, purity and sustainable non-violent development. As a first major step in this direction, we must introduce character building critical ethics education from the very beginning

of our educational curricula.

We must deeply reflect over Gandhiji’s answer to the question if he expected

independent India to attain the same standard of living as Britain: “It took Britain half the resources of the planet to achieve this prosperity. How many planets will a country

like India require!” Surely Indian civilization has the moral and spiritual resources to create a mass Satyagraha to save the world from the impending massive ecological crises (in the form of

causing pollution of air, water, land, global warming and climate change, depletion of non-

renewable natural resources, depletion of ozone layer, etc.), which has devastating implications not only for our future generations but also for the entire eco-system. Let India provide the world

a culture of non-violence and Truth in the context of our present technological age, where all religions could grow harmoniously in spite of their differences in the realm of metaphysics, and

where development could take place with loving care of the invaluable countless kinds of flora

and fauna of our invaluable life-sustaining natural systems.

Ashok Garg, New Delhi

I appreciate the efforts being taken for "Save Ganga" mission. I assure you that I am with you in

this mission.GANGA gives a clear message to humanity:

Go

Along Natural

Growth

Always

Onkar Mittal, New Delhi (Response2)

The PM needs to deliver a discourse to our MPs on good governance in our urban local bodies,

which are primarily responsible for taking first steps. Can there be a mechanism whereby the urban local bodies can come together to demand enabling actions from the State Governments,

who in turn should demand enabling action from the Central Government - however with our political culture of sensationalizing all issues, we want to take easier course of approaching the

PM.

NGRBA (National Ganga River Basin Authority)is only a mechanism to route WB finances with no

supranational authority. Are we demanding that it should become a supranational authority having overriding punitive powers over the three tiers of government? Even if that is done, shall

we achieve anything.

To sum it up, there is no short cut to hard work and for correcting the errors of the past, step by

step.

Swayamprabha Das, New Delhi

The Citizens’ Seventh Report on the State of India’s Environment, Excreta Matters: How urban

India is soaking up water, polluting rivers and drowning in its own excreta published by Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) has analyzed the status of sourcing of water in Indian cities

and mechanisms for wastewater treatment and disposal. It has dwelled upon the issue and

challenges of sustainable and affordable growth in India.

The report highlights the lack of data, research and understanding of this issue in India. It emphasizes the need for citizens to realize the linkages between water consumption, waste water

generation and its impact on rivers. There is a need to realize that water scarcity and waste are not temporary problems that could be addressed only through infrastructure development.

The second volume of the report includes 71 cities: water-excreta survey with individual city profiles. The past, current and future water footprint of each city has been analyzed. In case of

several cities the river has been polluted to the extent that it is reduced to a drain. For example

the Najafgarh drain in Delhi has its source in the lake Sahibi which was earlier a river. New Gurgaon is disposing its sewage into the Najafgarh Jheel (lake) leading to extreme pollution.

The Buddha Nullah in Ludhiana is referred to as a drain but not so long ago Buddha was called

darya (river). During floods of 2005 in Mumbai it was realized that a clogged drain called Mithi,

marred by encroachments is actually a river. If drastic measures are not implemented we will lose the remaining rivers, lakes and other water bodies, especially in the urban and peri-urban

areas.

The report is available at: http://csestore.cse.org.in/books/soe.html

Sourya Das, IIT Kharagpur, Kharagpur, West Bengal

Every year before the Ganesh visarjan and immersion of Goddess Durga idols after Durga Puja

festival the issue of reducing the pollution caused due to immersion of the idols in the Ganga and other rivers is raised.

The monitoring of water conducted by Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board (UPPCB) after 'Ganesh Utsav' in 2011 revealed 2 to 3 % decrease in the level of dissolved oxygen in the water.

The experts of UPPCB did not rule out the possibility of the idol immersion to be the prime reason for decrease in dissolved oxygen level.

According to a scientific officer the water experiences a rise in acidity as well as traces of heavy metal, depletes the process of metabolism and photosynthesis.

The proposal of burying the idols into the sand bed is not acceptable to the devotees. The co-

existence of worship and defilement of the Ganga defies logic and leaves observers confused.

A related article is available at: http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-09-

13/kanpur/30149119_1_huge-idols-immersion-sarsaiyya

I request members to share any information of relative contribution of point and Non Point Sources (NPS) of pollution in Ganges along with advice on how to tackle the issue of NPS of

pollution?

Anshuman Tripathi, National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC) Limited,

Dantewada, Chhattisgarh

The discussion on divine river Ganga can foster us to restrict polluting the river. The river is

sustaining our civilization since time immortal and that will continue. Major issue related with present water quality of river is discharge of sewage throughout the river course.

Sewage contributes more than 60% of pollution load at several locations. To divert the attention

people quote non point sources of pollution though they are only deteriorating the aesthetic

beauty and causing limited nuisance. It is our duty to ensure the stoppage of any flow of sewage in river Ganga. The probable ways can be diversion and interception of sewage through the

installation of gravity sewer lines all along the river banks.

All the treatment solution provided to treat the sewage need to be based mostly on natural

means observing the electricity paucity of states through which river flows. The nature based technologies are effective and require least maintenance.

Awareness creation amongst masses so that non point sources of pollution can also be checked is

crucial.

Further, I am citing studies describing present scenario of pollution at Varanasi:

The paper titled “The role of water use patterns and sewage pollution in

incidence of water-borne/enteric diseases along the Ganges river in Varanasi, India” mentions that in Varanasi an estimated 200 million liters per day or more of

untreated human sewage is discharged into the Ganges River. River water monitoring

over the past 12 years has demonstrated faecal coliform counts up to 108 Most Probable Number (MPN) per 100 ml and biological oxygen demand levels averaging over 40 mg/l

in the most polluted part of the river in Varanasi. A questionnaire-based survey was used to estimate water-borne and enteric disease incidence and study river use amongst

resident using water of the Ganges River in Varanasi. The overall rate of water-

borne/enteric disease incidence, including acute gastrointestinal disease, cholera, dysentery, hepatitis-A, and typhoid, was estimated to be about 66% during the one-year

period prior to the survey. Logistic regression analysis revealed significant associations between water-borne/enteric disease occurrence and the use of the river water for

bathing, laundry, washing eating utensils, and brushing teeth. Thirty-three cases of cholera were identified among families exposed to washing clothing or bathing in the

Ganges while no cholera cases occurred in unexposed families. Other exposure factors

such as lack of sewerage and toilets at residence, children defecating outdoors, poor sanitation, low income and low education levels also highlighted significant associations

with enteric disease outcome. This study provides an estimate of water-borne/ enteric disease incidence and identifies possible risk factors for residents who live by and use

water from the Ganges River in Varanasi. The study is available at:

http://www.mendeley.com/research/the-role-of-water-use-patterns-and-sewage-pollution-in-incidence-of-waterborneenteric-diseases-along-the-ganges-river-in-varanasi-

india/#page-1

The study “Isolation of Potentially Pathogenic Escherichia coli O157:H7 from

the Ganges River” highlights that Escherichia coli serotype O157:H7 was detected among bacteria collected from the Ganges River. O157:H7 isolates tested positive for

stx1, stx2, and eae gene sequences. Identification of potentially pathogenic isolates from extensively used source water indicates that O157:H7 may be a significant but as yet

under acknowledged public health concern in India. The study is available at: http://aem.asm.org/content/73/7/2369.full.pdf+html?sid=629384f7-5ece-4e9b-a069-

61e515f3e04e

N. K. Agarwal, Dehradun, Uttarakhand

The issue of immersion of the idols in the Ganga is a sensitive matter related to "astha" or belief and tradition. Hopefully with increasing awareness regarding environmental issues, people may

change their ways for betterment. What is needed is awareness creation regarding the harmful impacts of water pollution and the various sources of pollution including our life styles and

beliefs. Human beings are amenable to changes and that’s the silver lining in the dark cloud.

Toki Blah, ICARE, Shillong, Meghalaya

Shillong in Meghalaya is facing exactly the same environmental problems stated in the write up of

Swayamprabha Das. Two of its erstwhile pristine hill streams have now been turned into drains carrying putrid black and stinking city affluent. ICARE a Civil Society Organization is now

spearheading a movement to create awareness on how to manage our city waste so as to save

the two streams. Major NGOs with the Government have joined hands in this Save the Um Khrah and Um Shyrpi campaign (Um here means water).

Suraiya Tabassum, Positive Community Impact (PCI) India, New Delhi

First of all I would like to extend my sincere wishes to the group for initiating work for a noble cause and continuously striving towards addressing the issues. I hope that they will be able to

achieve the desired objective.

It is crucial to save our rivers, which are the main source of water for us. Without water there

can be no life. Therefore we need to care for our water resources and realize our mistakes. People need to avoid throwing litter into rivers, reduce waste water generation and advocate for

its treatment before disposal into rivers. Industrialists need to consider the adverse environmental impacts of the waste water and deploy adequate treatment facilities. There is a

need for political will as despite rules and policies the governance system is unable to take stringent steps against the violators.

The positive steps required to improve the situation are: Governance system needs to be responsive and accountable. It is crucial to inculcated

political will amongst policy makers and implementers. There is a need to effectively enforce stringent rules with out any bias for regulating

pollution due to industries.

Community awareness is necessary for enhancing accountability of people to take care of the rivers. Involving youth and women is also crucial. Mobilization strategies could

include outreach advocacy, workshops, camps, street plays, formation of river protection committees/groups etc.. Importance of water and its usefulness needs to be conveyed to

the people. It is essential to motivate them to be custodian of natural resources for

sustainable development. There is need to apply the strategy of cross-sectoral resource model that involves all

ministries and departments i.e., health, water resources, sanitation, livelihood, environment, forest working together for the cause.

Muhammad Mukhtar Alam, Centre for Ecological Audit, Social Inclusion and Governance, New Delhi (Response 1)

Endorsing the message conveyed by Sourya Das and noting the findings from the study report of

Anshuman Tripathy, I would like to share my views. Communities need to ensure that idols are

not immersed in rivers considering the facts related to pollution. The religious leaders may request the communities to consider alternatives to idol immersion in the rivers.

With reference to safeguarding the eternal flow of river Ganga and other rivers in India, I am

sharing a paper that I published in 2004 responding to the need to ensure sustainability of the Himalayan ecological system and other such mountainous regions. The paper is available at:

http://www.slideshare.net/mukhtaralam/global-ecological-safety-and-one-governance-protocol

In the paper, I suggested the adoption of inter-faith common monotheistic framework for personal and global adoption to attain the goals related to ecological safety and social inclusion.

It is important to promote carbon-neutral measures for leisure, celebration and all the energy intensive engagements. Ecostrategic Communicators for Carbon-Neutral Leisure is community of

leaders and organizations promoting the practice of carbon-neutral leisure. For details visit:

http://ecostrategiccommunicators.ning.com

There is need to transition to post-carbon and post-nuclear age and for this it is important that rivers are protected and preserved for food security, its pristine glory, purity, sustainability etc.

With rivers civilizations would remain flourishing. I would suggest multi-stakeholder engagement with intensive participation of communities across the board for eradicating the river pollution.

J. P. Maithani, Alaknanda Ghaati Shilpi (AAGAAS) Federation, Pipalkoti, Chamoli,

Uttarakhand (Response2)

I would like to raise few issues related to the pollution and Hydro power projects in the

river Ganga:

The river is facing pollution near the source itself. On the way to Gangotri to Chinyali

Saur in Uttrakashi District we observed that most of the Ashrams, Hotels, Dhabha and Road construction projects are polluting the main river Bhagirathi.

The number of Bhoj Patra and Cheer tress around the Bhojbasa and Goumukh trek is

decreasing due to excessive burden of tourism activities in the region. During the Kanwar

Yaatra festive season the number of tourists increases near the Goumukh and it enhances

the addition of non biodegradable pollutants in the river.

While Bhagirathi may contribute substantially to the water content in river Ganga to the

extent of around 40-50 % in the initial stretch, rest is contributed by tributaries including Alaknanda, Vishnuganga, Nandakini, Mandakini, Pindar etc.. Alaknanda and Bhagirathi join to

form Ganga at Devprayag. Additional water from rainfall and other tributaries add to the water content in the river Ganga downstream.

Most of the Ashrams near the river bank of Ganga- at Rishikesh and Haridwar are

polluting the Ganga. Government needs to conduct survey and research to identify these institutions and prevent them from polluting the river Ganga.

Most of the Hydro power projects in both the river valleys are Run of The River Projects

which do not need big reservoir so the water loss from the reservoir surface is limited.

Uttarakhand needs to promote small and micro hydro power for the development of the remote villages which includes- schools, colleges, power for non polluting industries in the

hills.

We need conservation initiatives on a sustainable basis as well as measures to ensure

development of remote villages. Decision makers in metros, national capital and state

capitals need to focus on the requirements of the poorest of the poor, marginalized communities residing in inaccessible mountain regions.

Ramakrishna Nallathiga, National Institute of Construction Management And Research (NICMAR), Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh

It is very nice to see so many perspectives emerging in the discussion. Any intervention to

improve the water quality of large river like Ganga would require large institution with a clear understanding, monitoring and control planning. This is much more challenging as it crosses

borders of five different States. Commitment regarding participation of all states to the best possible extent requires institutional coordination and some statutory back-up.

The paper titled “Institutional intervention in River Water Management: the Study of Yamuna river sub-basin in India” discusses an institutional structure analysis for Yamuna

river and suggests a strategic action plan. The paper recommends setting up of an authority in an integrated framework to improve river water quality and quantity on part of government,

while effective functioning of the authority shall be brought in by various mechanisms. The authority needs to consider economic as well as technical parameters to determine appropriate

choice, which bring forth the importance of economic valuation. The key tasks for the river

authority shall be regular monitoring of water resources, review of implementation of programs and ensuring key stakeholder participation.

In addition the paper discusses an alternative policy instrument commonly referred to as

permits/quotas that can be tradable. An increasing demand for permits increases their cost in the

long run and thus abatement becomes more acceptable option to firms. This leads to the economically efficient method of achieving the objective of improved river water quality and

quantity. The paper is available at: http://www.cgg.gov.in/IISA_Paper.pdf

Anshuman Tripathi, National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC) Limited,

Dantewada, Chhattisgarh

I would like to share a paper entitled "The Ganga at Varanasi and a travail to stop her abuse" explaining best possible solution for the pollution problems of river at Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh.

Abstract: Ganga, the holiest of Indian rivers is highly polluted near many cities on its banks. The problem

of pollution at Varanasi as at many other places, is due to sewage inflow, industrial waste, animal carcasses, unclaimed human bodies, plastic bags, etc. The biochemical oxygen demand is as high

as 20 mg/l and faecal coliform counts are around 1.5 million/100 ml at downstream end of the

city. This article deals with the most appropriate cost- effective technical solution. Analysis of the reasons due to which efforts of the Sankat Mochan Foundation and its Swatcha Ganga campaign

had limited success is included.

The paper is available at: http://202.3.77.144/sites/default/files/The%20Ganga%20at%20Varanasi%20and%20a%20travai

l%20to%20stop%20her%20abuse.pdf

After implementation of scheme suggested in paper the experiences and pathways identified can

act as a model for solution of problems in all major cities through which river Ganga flows. The scheme's main suggestions include:

Interception and diversion of sewage flowing into the Ganga on the ghats without using electric power and pumps.

The treatment plant for Varanasi to use the least amount of electric power, adoption of a

technology that ensures elimination of faecal coliform and other harmful bacteria along with low operational and maintenance costs.

Retrofitting of the existing pumps and Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs) to ensure use of

GAP Phase I facilities.

The proposed technical solutions included:

Implementing watertight interceptor sewer along the ghats of the Ganga to collect the

sewage and convey the same by gravity to a treatment plant.

Advanced Integrated Wastewater Oxidation Pond System (AIWPS), developed at the University of California at Berkeley, USA, to be adopted for 300 MLD STP capacity to be

developed.

People’s involvement and awakening has to provide a major share in the solution of

problem. Their pro-activeness towards restoration of river's ancient glory is required.

Anil Gupta, Consumer India, New Delhi

I must compliment all the contributors for their concern to highlight issues and suggest solutions

for reducing pollution in our lifeline rivers like the Ganga.

I must insist on not loosing the direction and not concentrating on more important sources of river pollution. While Ganesh Idols or Durga Idols that are immersed once in a year do contribute

to increasing pollution/BOD, sewage and industrial effluents contribute several folds to the

pollution level in our rivers throughout the year. I am not of the opinion that idols need to be immersed in the in rivers but it is crucial to focus on the major contributors. Sourya Das and

Muhammad Mukhtar Alam are both right in observation but they also need to focus on the issue of sewage and industrial effluents.

Let us get our facts right, have a better perspective and emphasize the need for treatment of sewage and industrial effluents. The State & Central Pollution Control Boards need to implement

strictly the norms related to waste water treatment.

We have to prioritize as we are short of time, attention, commitment, solutions and money. Data

is available online from various scientific studies regarding the total pollution load on rivers for almost every kilometer of its path and likely solutions have also been provided. What we may

need is a Mission and an independent fast track Judiciary similar to Lokpal to deal with such cases.

Kanchan Chopra, Institute of Economic Growth, New Delhi

I enjoy reading the responses and would like to share my views. I find that J. P. Maithani has put across the trade-off between conservation and development for the vulnerable very well. We

need to distinguish between different stretches of the river and develop specific strategies for

each stretch. The upper valleys need to be conserved in its pristine state and basic development related activities could be allowed for the poor and vulnerable groups.

Implementing a number of run-of the-river hydel projects alters the landscape and there may be

trade-offs between energy generation and conservation. There is a need to determine the number of projects that could be implemented for sustainable energy production in the upper

reaches for the state or for export to other states.

It is crucial to limit the number of tourists visiting the region at a point of time for conserving the

environment. The challenge is implementing the policies required to ensure sustainability of the river Ganga.

Salahuddin Saiphy, Institute of Rural Research and Development, Gurgaon, Haryana

I have one observation regarding the issue raised here. If we look back in our history we can trace that the pollution of rivers is not just because of idol emersion and other minor religious

acts including throwing pooja residue, ash, garlands, flowers etc.. The amount of such waste added is very limited and non continuous which increases only during festival time.

Earlier, the population was less and rivers were able to clean itself through self rejuvenation process. But today, our rivers also need to deal with a continuous load of pollution from these

cities including toxic industrial and domestic waste including both liquid and solid. Cities have grown considerably and rivers are unable to deal with pollutants added to it. Rivers have turned

into drains. The aquatic life including flora and fauna has been reduced to minimum which used

to play a critical role in river's self cleaning process. Religious, cultural and social factors play a minor role in current situation of rivers in India, the major role is played by our water

management systems including waste water treatment and measures to ensure minimum flow in rivers.

Suman Sahai, Gene Campaign, New Delhi

This is a good debate. It raises the issue once again of having a comprehensive water use policy that encompasses surface and ground water. Apart from the aspect of keeping our water sources

clean- the Ganga especially! our policy needs to determine the access of various actors to the

water sources. How for instance we allocate water for agriculture, domestic use and industry?

Most states don't have a policy for groundwater, neither does the center. How do we enforce recharge and limit the current unlimited extraction? How should river waters be shared along the

length of the river? Kanchan Chopra highlights important issues and we need to add the element

of equity in sharing waters and ensuring sustainability of the river.

J. P. Maithani, Alaknanda Ghaati Shilpi (AAGAAS) Federation, Pipalkoti, Chamoli Uttarakhand (Response3)

Thanks to Kanchan Chopra for her response to the issues raised by me. As I am a native of the region I have analyzed the impacts of infrastructure and hydro power project development since

1997.

There is a need to organize awareness creation programs. Photo documentation of both the

valleys could be prepared to highlight the situation at the ground level. The Holy Rivers including Alaknanda and Bhagirathi are like the arteries of Himalaya and their sustainability needs to be a

priority.

I have studied the Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) of few of the Hydro Projects in which it is mentioned that diversion of the river flow may affect the local biodiversity and drinking water

availability to wildlife and locals. There is a need to organize detailed study in both the valleys to

determine, implement adequate measures for conservation of local biodiversity and ensuring

drinking water availability.

Hope we all will contribute to this noble cause in the best possible way.

Janak Daftari, Jalsangrah, Mumbai, Maharashtra

I would like to share the success story of Biosanitiser as a solution to the problem of waste water

treatment. It is a product developed by Dr. Uday Bhawalkar, an IIT Bombay alumnus. The principle of operation is to enhance oxygenation. After treatment with Biosanitizer and

degradation over 3 to 4 months, solid waste is converted into excellent manure and wastewater

is transformed into water usable for flushing, gardening, etc. There is no odour and other harmful emissions during the waste treatment process due to the application of Biosanitizer.

The Biosanitser can be used for treatment of solid, liquid and medical waste. Application areas

include sewage and sludge treatment from housing societies, Food outlets, Hospitals, Canteens

etc.

The system required for its utilization is virtually free of maintenance and repetitive costs. The recycling system can be easily set up using standard low-cost construction material. There is no

need of electricity to treat the waste streams.

It is possible to treat waste water through utilization of Biosanitiser in a decentralized mode to

avoid pollution of the river Ganga.

For details visit: http://www.jalsangrah.org/bs.html

Shiv Narayan Sidh, Government College Gairsain, Chamoli, Uttarakhand

To ensure sustainability of the river Ganga, we need to take certain proactive steps and action

with political will. There are two types of source of pollutions point and non point. My suggestions

to save the river Ganga are following:

To check point source pollution, we need to stop and treat all sewage which is discharged directly into the river right from the Gangotari to Devprayag, Mana and

Badrinath on Alaknanda. The capacities of Sewage Treatment Plants (STP) need to be designed considering the trends in growth of populations. In Uttarakhand population

growth is modest due to migration. However simultaneously rural to urban migration has

increased within the state resulting in heightened growth in small towns such as Badrinath, Joshimath, Karanprayag, Rudraprayag, Srinagar, Devprayag, Uttarkashi and

Tehri.

To check non point sources of pollution, there is a need to restrict utilization of

polythene and for this we need political will. We need to promote sustainable practices in religious tourism in general and Kanwar Yatra in particular. Month long Kanwar Yatra

impacts the river Ganga more than any other form of tourism. Restriction on immersion of Kanwar and idols is required. This is a preventive approach rather than curative

measures adopted in Ganga Action Plan (GAP) I & II.

Solid Waste Management: None of the villages and most of town in the catchments

of the river Ganga has Solid Waste Management System (SWMS) of reasonable capacity

to collect, process and recycle the waste. A SWMS based on User Development Fee

(UDF) is required. This will lead to a sense of ownership amongst the community. Uttatakhand has a history of managing its natural resources in a collective manner and

this need to continue for ensuring sustainability.

Ramesh Jalan, UNDP, New Delhi

The main points highlighted in the report “Environmental Flows: Restoring The Earth’s

Arteries” by Latha Anantha, River Research Centre, Kerala & Parineeta Dandekar, South Asia Network on Dams Rivers and People, Pune, Maharashtra is given below:

According to the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, freshwater biodiversity is facing maximum threats amongst all ecosystems.

Rivers like the Indus, the Ganga and the Brahmaputra are struggling to reach the seas

throughout the year.

The Krishna and Cauvery rivers in the Central Indian Peninsula hardly reach the seas in

summer.

Popular view of decision makers is that water is flowing waste to the sea and hence every drop has to be utilized for the benefit of mankind.

Globally experts recommend that a river needs to be dissected into compartments and is to be apportioned between different uses and users but decision makers have not

agreed.

Natural flows to the downstream livelihood needs to the ecology and aquatic biodiversity

is rarely the concern of decision makers.

Dam projects have been cleared singularly based on project level Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs).

With increasing number of dams being planned the need for Cumulative

Impact Assessment (CIA) of cascade of dams has been highlighted.

CIA is also being considered due to the opposition to the series of dams being planned on the tributaries of the Brahmaputra in North East India rather than the stringency of

the clearance mechanism.

Presently 41 % of the world’s population lives in rivers basins under stress.

The Ramsar Convention (1971), The Helsinki Convention on Trans boundary Water

Courses and International Lakes (1992), Convention on Biodiversity (2001) are some of

the international conventions, policies and legal instruments that have included the value of water for nature and or environment in their framework.

The Narmada Bachao Andolan was one of the earliest movements to raise the issue of

cumulative impacts of dams on a single river.

Adverse impacts on river ecology, aquatic species, flood plains, farming, fisheries,

drinking and irrigation water needs both downstream and between the dams are being observed.

Ecological or e-flows are required for ecosystem functions and are one of the most

important factors deciding the longevity of a river.

Communities and Civil Society Organizations need to make an effort at documenting

ecological services and goods from rivers and ensure that these are considered while setting objectives and devising e-flows.

The Living Ganga Program, WWF India assessed the e-flows required for the Upper

Ganga segment of 800 km from Rishikesh to Kanpur in the range of 47-72% of the Mean

Annual Runoff (MAR).

The report is available at: http://www.internationalrivers.org/resources/towards-restoring-flows-into-the-earth%E2%80%99s-arteries-7508

B.Surendran, Indian Youth Climate Network, New Delhi

According to the Comptroller and Auditor General of India, “Performance Audit Report of Hydropower Development Through Private Sector Participation in Uttarakhand”

(2008-2009) the policy on hydropower projects was silent on the vital issue of maintaining

minimum ecological downstream flow. The physical verification of four out of five operational projects revealed that river-beds down stream had almost completely dried up, the water flow

was down to a trickle and it is extremely inadequate for the sustenance of ecology and nearby groundwater aquifers.

It is mentioned that negligence of environmental concerns was obvious as the muck generated from excavation and construction activities was being dumped into the rivers contributing to

increase in the turbidity of water.

The plantation activity was highly deficient, as 38 per cent of projects reported hardly any

plantation; posing severe hazards both for natural ecology and stabilization of hill slopes.

It needs to be ensured that post-construction environmental and ecological monitoring continues and includes provisions for modifying plant operations when unacceptable impacts are observed.

There is a need to limit the development of hydro projects unless measures to address the

possible adverse impacts are not implemented.

The report is available at: http://www.cag.gov.in/html/cag_reports/uttranchal/rep_2009/pa_cont.htm

Rajesh Shah, Peer Water Exchange, Bangalore, Karnataka

I have read the passionate discussion with interest and appreciate the range of inputs from the practical to the spiritual. A couple of years ago after visiting the Nile in Egypt, I wrote an essay

on how we defile our sacred Ganga while the modern Egyptians maintain a river with no sacred

value so well that you can swim in the Nile at Cairo:

http://blog.peerwater.org/2010/02/13/nile-v-ganga/

What are the major themes that can be covered under the intended objectives of the proposed roundtable to preserve the social, cultural and spiritual importance of the

river Ganga?

One theme in the discussion summarized it all: prevent pollution of all kinds into all waters that

lead to the Ganga.

What is the strategy that needs to be adopted to make this initiative more interactive and action-oriented? What other activities will add value to this initiative?

A novel approach would be to mandate all leaders to bathe in the Ganga. A Lok Sabha session on the banks of the Ganga could be conducted annually. Heads of all companies and cities

discharging waste into the Ganga could be requested to swim in it.

One of the means to make a roundtable session action oriented and not just to publish papers is

to have it semi-submerged in the Ganga. If the members are serious about remaining at the roundtable action will happen.

Please share examples of local, national or international initiatives related to

reducing pollution, maintaining flows and ensuring sustainability of rivers?

Pollution is the way to reduced operating costs and enhances short-term profits so in a country

focusing on growth at all costs, it is difficult to seek attention to activities that dampen growth. Note that bad health increases economic cost due to increased pharmaceutical consumption and

health-care costs (despite all the other economic studies). Pollution control industry that includes water treatment plants, filters etc. benefit from increased pollution.

For example ... in Cleveland the Cuyahoga river caught fire several times (last time in 1969) with Time magazine describing it as the river that "oozes rather than flows" and in which a person

"does not drown but decays". Am sure this community knows of this and can track what happened. The question is whether our holy river has to descend to that level?

How can citizens, NGOs and the corporate sector contribute to reducing pollution in the river Ganga, and ensure its sustainability?

It would be relatively easy to set up a system where polluting activities can be reported via sms,

web platforms etc. and all biological and industrial pollution could be tracked with citizen involvement. Hotspots can be highlighted on a map and daily analysis can be published. It is

possible to take initiatives preventing pollution as well as activities that are polluting and the

gathered data could be utilized to report polluters and support the organizations involved in cleaning the river. With devotion we can get the good to overpower the bad.

Sunanda Reddy, CARENIDHI, New Delhi

I thought it worthwhile sharing an observation & apply the experiential learning to contribute to the sustainability of Ganga or to maintain clean water.

We came across people genuinely concerned about environmental issues both at Varanasi &

Prayag (Allahabad).The local communities shared valuable suggestions including the following:

Place DUSTBINS every few yards along riverbanks especially at the ghats of Varanasi and all Piligrim towns along the Ganga river. (There isn't a single dustbin along the riverbank; people

rarely consider taking back the garbage to their residence, considering the floating population).

Citizen patrol/school volunteer corps/coupled with intensive Public campaigns along banks-particularly for banning plastic could be organized.

Policy implementation with accountability at local Government and state levels is required.

Documentation of personnel and resource utilization needs to be available in public domain.

Jai Kumar Gaurav, UNDP, New Delhi

With the development in science and technology it is possible to analyze and predict the likely geological and hydrological changes occurring in glaciers and river basins. Scientific management

of glacial rivers and lakes in the Himalayas is crucial for sustainability of the region. We cannot

control the natural factors leading to changes in the river basin but impacts of anthropogenic interventions needs to be managed for the benefit of the ecosystem and all living species. The

hydropower projects under construction may provide jobs and lead to economic development in the region. However their adverse impacts on the ecosystem and local communities need to be

addressed.

With extreme pollution levels in the river Ganga, scientific and technological interventions are

required to clean the river. According to Manusmriti, “not by blind faith, but only by application of logical reasoning or tarka one can know what right action or dharma

is”. Therefore it is imperative to utilize all possible policy, technological, social and managerial interventions to save the river Ganga from further deterioration.

In the present Knowledge Age humanity is exploring the universe but we need to realize that all socio-economic, industrial, educational and professional activities are dependent on uninterrupted

supply of water and power. To ensure that development and life is sustainable it is essential to protect our rivers from further damage.

We need to provide uninterrupted water and power supply throughout the year to the citizens of India and for that our rivers need to be protected from pollution and unnecessary hindrances.

Muhammad Mukhtar Alam, Centre for Ecological Audit, Social Inclusion and

Governance, New Delhi (Response 2)

While endorsing the call of finding alternatives to immersion to the idols with the active

participation of religious leaders, I would like to emphasize that this call did not exclude the urgent need to eliminate all industrial effluents and release of untreated sewerage in the rivers

and other water bodies. Indeed, there is a need to accelerate the processes for elimination of

industrial effluents from the rivers and water bodies that are critical for ecologically safe urban and rural habitats. Thus, I do indeed endorse the view of Anil Gupta as well. Salahuddin Saiphy

informs that the amount of pollutants is rather insignificant.

However, from my observation of number of idols that are getting immersed in Yamuna each year, it is clear that its number is increasing. For example, one can compare the number of idols

on the occasion of Saraswati Puja, Chatt puja and other that were immersed 20 years ago with

the current number. Traveling from the Yamuna Vihar this year gave me an idea that number

has substantially increased. I would like share my response to the queries as below considering the fact that my ancestral home in the village of Ekdara-Kishandaspur in Bhagalpur district falls in

the Ganga basin and therefore issues related to survival and ecological safety of Ganga is very critical to me.

What are the major themes that can be covered under the intended objectives of the proposed roundtable to preserve the social, cultural and spiritual importance of the

river Ganga?

The critical themes could be the following: Transformation of consumption and production patterns in the urban and rural areas in

order to eliminate inorganic and organic pollutants that are hazardous to the aquatic life

of the river. Transforming designs of the urban habitats in order to make these energy independent

and water secure through innovative use of technologies that are based on renewable resources. For example Delhi could be envisaged to survive for children of 40th century

with availability of clean water in Yamuna. One of immediate task could be to make

Yamuna water accessible to Red Fort as it was during the time of Mughal rulers. Making urban habitats food secure is required through new policies, programmes and

perspectives considering that acquisition of agriculture land and expansion of urban habitats has reduced availability of food.

Envisioning cities with sustainable populations through bridging the urban-rural divide. Envisioning cities in the post-carbon and post-nuclear age.

What is the strategy that needs to be adopted to make this initiative more interactive and action-oriented? What other activities will add value to this initiative?

Health of the rivers is dependent on eco-restoration across the track of the rivers. Ecologically

hostile urban habitats and its expansion is directly linked to increase in sewage and industrial

effluents and thus radical change in consumption, habitat design and production is needed. Increasing demand of energy in urban areas creates undue pressure on the rivers systems as the

later is used for generation of energy through construction of large dams. There are some who have spent their lifetimes in securing perennial flow of rivers, but these endeavors appears to be

failing as there is no letup in the expansion of the urban habitats and increase in the production

of sewage and effluents

Please share examples of local, national or international initiatives related to reducing pollution, maintaining flows and ensuring sustainability of rivers?

Industrialization and rapid expansion of urban habitats based on increased consumption of non-

renewable resources has been linked to definition of 'growth'. At this stage, I would like to share

the Global Transition in Action http://transitioninaction.com and Movement for Transition to Post Carbon India http://transitionurbanindia.ning.com that have been working for multiplying

communication and action for multi-stakeholder action toward transition to ecologically safe future with protection and preservation of the river systems as one of key thrust areas.

How can citizens, NGOs and the corporate sector contribute to reducing pollution in the river Ganga, and ensure its sustainability?

All dwellers of the urban and rural areas need to work for transition to post carbon age, as with

the exhaustion of non-renewable energy habitats its survival would remain dependent on the renewable resources only. It is likely that with the end of what I call petro-modern age, we would

have automatically reversed the decline in the health of the river systems. But till then, in the

transition period of say 100-200 years, we would have to maximize the treatment of sewage, reduce the quantity of industrial effluents while enhancing Green Gross Domestic Product (GDP)

through ecologically safe agriculture, horticulture and distribution systems. NGOs and Corporate both need optimized communication and action for transition to post-carbon and post-nuclear

India.

Prasoon Shukla, Dr. Brijendra Swaroop (P.G.) College, Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh

To control pollution in GANGA we must think about open drains, untreated sewers, religious discourse, we must think that how without compromising the religious values, we can control

pollutants in the Holy river, for example dead body burning create smoke as washing of the

place results in ashes in river. Therefore installation of filters at ghats is required. However, with the introduction of biomass gasifiers one could control the pollution substantially.

Similarly idols could be dumped in the soil near the ghat of the Ganga rather then introducing it

directly into the river. Ghats must be maintained on Public Private Partnership (PPP) model,

which must ensure daily cleaning and restriction of unwanted materials into the river directly.

People residing near ghats must be trained specifically and the above measures, if undertaken could definitely lower the urban pollution in the river Ganga. Further, by implementing the laws

strictly industrial pollution can also be controlled.

Ashok Madan, Unnat Bharat Society, New Delhi

I am sharing highlights of the article “Water Quality and state of water in India-I”. In this article, the authors present an overview of the underlying causes for water pollution in the

country and also suggest remedial actions in terms of best practices and legal mandates

required. Water is the common and equal property of everyone through whose domain it flows and right of each over its use and consumption is the same.

Stages of evolution of societies and water pollution

If water has biological contaminants it can be presumed that society is still traditional and poor,

for it does not have the ability to treat its human sewage and other organic wastes.

If the water has chemical toxins, the society has progressed to industrial use. But it is still poor, for it cannot clean the water before discharge.

If the water has trace toxic pollutants including arsenic, mercury, hormones and pesticides, to

more deadly dioxins and furans then it is industrialized and rich.

India has a double burden of pollution to treat as it has both traditional and modern pollutants.

It, therefore, also has a double burden of diseases to treat including the traditional waterborne diseases, which still result in unacceptable human morbidity and mortality and modern chemical-

induced expensive diseases like cancers and other genetic disorders.

Why is pollution control strategy not working in the country?

Pollution-Drainage disconnect: City infrastructure is unable to collect and convey substantial

sewage, resulting in treated waste mixing with untreated waste. Cities do not have drainage system to convey excreta to the Sewage Treatment Plants.

Location of Sewage Treatment Plants is not appropriate in several cases.

There is no planning related to utilization of treated sewage and it is mixed with untreated sewage before discharging into the river.

Additional sources of pollution: Heavy dosing of water by chlorine leads to formation of weak

hydrochloric and hypochlorous acid.

Biofilm formation in pipelines provides protection to bacteria and other microorganisms that

cause contamination of water. Leaks in the pipe network also leads to contamination.

Water, Legal & regulatory framework (or absence of these): A legal right to clean water is not provided in India.

Water quality standards are not stringently enforced.

Municipalities and water agencies have no control over quality of water at source.

Solution

Municipality need to legislate water treatment at building point to safeguard and protect

residents from consuming contaminated water. U.S.A. has legislated water quality at Point of

Entry and Point of Use as water can get contaminated during distribution. Quality of water can be maintained at the Point of Use in the building through TruBlu D treatment. A suitable legislation

needs to be passed to mandate this.

Recycling and Reuse: What will it cost and how is it to be done?

Cities have no option but to recycle and reuse every drop of water. The starting point has to be

finding an end use. Water tariffs have to be adjusted so that a segment of buyers find it cheaper

to use treated wastewater over potable water.

Who has the ownership and responsibility for defining comprehensive water policy in the country?

According to the Indian constitution, a state government has the power to make laws in respect

to water resources of that state. The Parliament has the power to legislate the regulation and development of inter-state rivers. Thus a State Government can exercise authority over water

subject to certain limitations that may be imposed by the Parliament.

The legislative framework of the constitution related to water is based on Entry 17 of the State

List, Entry 56 in the Union List, and Article 262 of the Constitution. As Water is a concurrent subject (i.e. amongst the list of areas where both the central government and state governments

have ability to draft laws), Article 254 also plays an important role in helping set define the resolution in cases of inconsistency between laws made by Parliament and laws made by the

Legislatures of States.

So far the Parliament has not made much use of the powers vested in it through the Entry 56 of

the Union List.

According to the provisions of Entry 20 in the Concurrent List, namely, economic and social planning, are also quite relevant. By virtue of this provision, the major and medium irrigation,

hydropower, flood control and multi-purpose projects are required to seek clearance of the

central government for inclusion in the national plan.

Rationalizing the legislative ambit is the need of the hour

Right to clean water is enshrined in Article 21 of the Indian Constitution as part of the guarantee

of Right to Life. However there is a need to enforce legislation on right to clean water, as it is fundamental to life.

The article is available at: http://www.sustainabilityoutlook.in/content/water-quality-and-state-

water-india-i

Prabhat Dabral, New Delhi

I would like to share some basic thoughts with the people associated with the movement:

Several such initiatives have led to limited results due to bureaucratic hurdles and improper structure. Thousands of crores have been spent but the pollution in rivers of India including our

own Ganga continues unabated. REPURIFYING GANGA AND OTHER RIVERS WILL INVOLVE A MULTI- PRONGED STRATEGY WHICH HAS TO BE SUPPORTED BY A CONSTITUTIONAL

MANDATE...A STRONG SOCIAL AUDIT HAS TO BE AN INTEGRAL PART OF SUCH A

STRUCTURE......)

One major issue being raised in Uttarakhand is regarding the hue and cry around the hydro electic projects of Uttarakhand while not enough is being said about the irrigation canals

emanating from Rishiklesh and Haridwar!!!! it is a fact that hydro electric projects consume very

limited water and it flows back to Ganga after producing electricity in the tunnels. The canals beyond Rishikesh divert around 95% of holi water for irrigation. The issue has to be tackled

seriously and prominently in all our communications. I was happy to note that the brochure of the seminar mentions this issue...but it needs to be highlighted further if only to assuage the

feelings of uttarakhandis.

I consider cleaning the Ganga a futuristic developmental endeavor. Let us consider the following:

The value of ecological imbalance and human misery caused by the huge upstream water reservoirs (Hydro projects) far outweighs the short term gains by way of

generating electricity. The canal system which takes away over ninety five percent of water from the Ganga,

between Haridwar and Rishikesh alone, is an obsolete and loss making irrigation system

because, as several researches have established that the loss of water in canals is phenomenal and hardly about 15 % of water in canals is actually put to use for

irrigation...There are several other efficient irrigation systems that could be considered. Canals are not required all round the year for irrigation. There is a need to seriously

consider these issues.

If the rivers are not to be used for generating electricity through mega projects and for irrigation through mega canals, than the areas thus being deprived of immediate benefits

must be compensated from the national corpus. Consider the case of Uttarakhand felling of trees is prohibited and mega hydro projects are not being allowed for the sake of

nations future. Therefore Uttarakhand has to be compensated just as we have a system of carbon credit, there has to be a system of scientifically quantified

water credit. Ditto for the downstream areas where the rivers have become lifeline of

people - not only for irrigation but other chores as well. INVOVEMENT OF PEOPLE IS AN INMTEGRAL AND PERHAPS THE MOST IMPORTANT ASPECT OF THIS MOVEMENT, IT

HAS TO ENCOMPASS ALL - RELIGION, SOCIO - ECONOMIC REALITY AND PEOPLES ASPIRATIONS.

It’s a gigantic task to be undertaken if our rivers are to be protected for future

generations...even as it is there is hardly any Ganga beyond the Haridwar barrage and there almost no Yamuna beyond Wazirabad barrage in New Delhi.

The new constitutional entity will have to evolve alternate sources of energy not

dependent on water, compensation for those being adversely affected even if in the short term and development of the riverside areas so that the rivers are saved from

pollution.

Onkar Mittal, Society for Action in Community Health (SACH), New Delhi (Response

3) India needs a completely new approach to managing its water resources. Planning Commission

member, Mihir Shah shares his blueprint for success as India is set to adopt a radical new water resources strategy based on management solutions rather than engineering-based solutions,

according to Shah, who leads the water resources, rural development and decentralised

governance portfolios at India’s Planning Commission. Speaking at the Global Water Summit in Rome on 30 April, he described the strategy as “a complete change in the way that we look

at water and the way we manage water”. The new strategy outlines a series of institutional reforms to help implement the shift, including

the establishment of state level regulatory authorities responsible for setting tariffs, allocating

resources to user groups, resolving conflicts and monitoring water quality; establishing a national water commission based on the Australian model; and introducing ‘rational’ water pricing. To

drive forward implementation, the central government will make the availability of irrigation funds conditional on reform. The strategy is now only contingent on the approval

of India’s full 12th Five-Year Plan by the National Development Council in July this year – a process that is expected to be straightforward.

Some elements of the plan are already being implemented – some states have set up regulatory

authorities for water resources, for example, while some have undertaken major reforms to the structure of the irrigation sector. Shah recognises, however, that progress will be uneven

across states, and he believes it may take a decade for the new approach to percolate through the whole of India.

The driver of change is necessity. In recent decades, India has relied on large scale water

infrastructure paired with unrestrained groundwater exploitation to increase its water supply. This approach is now obsolete, according to Shah. The availability of suitable sites for large

dams has been exhausted, and groundwater is being used far more rapidly than the natural recharge rate. “We are facing a man-made crisis,” Shah told summit delegates,

referring to the over-abstraction of groundwater in many parts of India.

Although the plan does not specify who will pay for irrigation water – or the unit cost – Shah believes that farmers will be willing to pay for a high-quality water supply service if they are

confident that it will be delivered. Whether the private sector can be brought in to provide these services in the agricultural sector will depend critically on whether charging schemes can be

made to work. The strategy ultimately envisages a national water framework law. This would not set

targets, as the European framework legislation does, but would define the principles of water

resource management and would be legally justiciable. The tricky issue in the Indian context is how to pass a national law on what is essentially a state

subject. One possibility is to take advantage of Article 252 of India’s constitution, which allows the national parliament to pass a law after two states have passed it in their state assemblies.

“We are going to down this route. This will take time, as even though the chief ministers of a

couple of states have verbally agreed, they need to get their own legislatures on board. The next two years will be decisive.”

New Delhi will also be able to make use of centralised funding schemes to exercise leverage over local governments. “Under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission, we are

making it a conditionality of funding that you have to have sewage treatment going hand in hand with water supply systems,” said Shah. He sees a huge opportunity for the

private sector to participate in the expansion of treatment plants and collection networks.

Many outsiders are sceptical of the country’s ability to push through the necessary reforms,

drawing attention to India’s sclerotic public policy process and the particular challenges involved in central government trying to tackle a state level issue. More than 90% of delegates at the

Global Water Summit admitted in a live poll that they think it will take between 10 and a hundred years for India to implement the paradigm shift outlined by Shah. However,

Shah is much more optimistic. “It’s a new world out there,” he says, “and we welcome you to

come and join us.

H. S. Sharma, Sobha Sariya Engineering College, Sikar, Rajasthan*

You live in India and I live in Bharat. I am highlighting three case studies affecting various states

in India due to poor quality of water as per details given below:

1. Villagers on the border of Gujarat and Rajasthan

The water in this area contains excess fluoride and therefore, nobody gives their daughter in marriage here as because of the fluoride a girl of 20 years looks like she is 70 years old. Nobody

is really worried about excess fluoride in Water.

2. Mainpuri in Uttar Pradesh I recently met a girl from Mainpuri who is 15 years old and studying in Vanasthali and both her

kidneys are damaged due to drinking jet pump water without treatment. She confirms that all the children because of the poor quality of water are also stunted. She is under treatment at AIIMS,

New Delhi and is awaiting kidney transplant. 3. West Bengal / Bihar

The army recruitment team went to Bihar and Bengal for recruitment, but did not recruit a single

person due to fragile bones because the local people drink water with high arsenic content. It is well known that arsenic makes their bones brittle.

These are some of these ground realities for which we must find a solution.

Muhammad Mukhtar Alam, Centre for Ecological Audit, Social Inclusion and Governance, New Delhi (Response3)

The suggestion of Rajesh Shah for conducting Lok Sabha sessions is indeed innovative in case

logistics are taken care of for the same. For a serious session, it appears the idea is not workable .However a day certainly could be dedicated for visiting the river and feel the critical need to

make the water free from effluents that is hazardous for the aquatic life and detrimental to the survival of the river. Diplomats could be also invited for this important annual occasion of

ecological audit of Ganga and measuring the quality of the water. Indeed the primary objective needs to be to let all have a dip in the water and let all have an occasion to enjoy the swim in

naturally clean water. Personally, I learnt swimming in Luxmania river, a tributary of Great River

Ganga located near Kishandaspur and Ekdara. Since childhood, swimming in the river has been a pleasurable experience. I used to visit relatives in Peerpaint and Mednipur (Katihar district) and

one of the major attractions for me was the pleasure of swimming in Ganga river there.

In Delhi, I never dreamt of visiting Yamuna for swimming. As a matter of fact, all residing in

Delhi are aware specially those dependent on tap water supplied by Jal Board as to how the quality deteriorates in summer and sometime one feels the difference in quality. Also Yamuna

river and its quality of water in the downstream in many cities with industries and large population is also visible to all traveling across Yamuna.

For those living in trans-Yamuna region in Delhi the experience of the health of the river is visible

on a day to day basis. At Nigambodh Ghat, there exist statues of Ganga and Yamuna showing

how these rivers have been important religiously as well. Thus, it is not that people are not

aware of the quality of the water in Ganga in some places, but the critical question relates to eco-restoration plans for the rivers and the cities that need to survive in the post-carbon and

post-nuclear age. For this, as suggested in earlier we need reshaping the development policy in order to make rivers flow sustainably.

Suman Sahai, Gene Campaign, New Delhi (Response2)*

Thanks to Janak Daftari for sharing the useful information regarding Biosanitizer. Gene Campaign would like to introduce this technology to village communities in areas where we work.

Kindly share details of Biosanitiser and guidelines for its usage. Household and kitchen waste is mixed with plastic bags and other non-biodegradable waste as well. There is a need to sort the

waste in biodegradable and non-biodegradable components before processing utilizing techniques like Biosanitizer.

S D Limaye, Ground Water Institute (NGO), Pune, Maharashtra*

Janak Daftari may please share the cost of using this wonder material "Biosanitizer" for treating 1

cu m of impure water or 1 kg of solid household waste. Please mention sites in Maharashtra, Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh where it has been tried successfully, so interested persons could visit.

It is crucial to promote products like Biosanitizer for decentralized waste water management and avoiding pollution of the river Ganga.

Salahuddin Saiphy, Institute of Rural Research and Development, Gurgaon, Haryana

(Response 2)

I hope you are well and some of you have already been blessed with the monsoon rains and enjoying it. But at the same time, many people in villages of India are still unnoticed by

government programs and policies and lack basic facilities such as drinking water, one of the most essential component of life. These poor people still neither see clouds of rain in the sky nor

any hope of getting good quality water to meet their daily water requirements and depend on

unhygienic, polluted and insufficient water sources, leading to conflicts and riots at times. Please find attached a link of small video clip (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PGt-

bjo4ffE&feature=plcp) showing the degree of water problems, rural people are facing within 100 km radius of Delhi, India's capital.

We look forward for your support and necessary action please.

Devendra Sahai, Global Warming Reduction Centre (GWRC), New Delhi

There are two root causes of the destruction and pollution of our Resources and Eco Systems

including rivers. These are:

Unchecked increase in Population. There has been an over four fold increase since 1947.

(A) Steady increase in per capita consumption of finite Resources due to development. This

means increase in our Carbon Footprint. (B)

Our Country’s Carbon Footprint is equal to (A) x (B).

However, by 2050, India's Country Footprint is expected to be just about the highest in the World. Can Mother Earth sustain it ??? ! Will there be any water or greenery or tigers left by

2050? How shall we survive without water? What if and when the Ganga and other rivers dry up?

What is to be done to contain our Country Carbon Footprint within sustainable limits? We must not stop development. The fight against poverty must continue.

We are then left with no option other than first limiting our Population and then bringing it down

to within sustainable limits. Difficult, but do we have a choice? We are shy and scared of talking about this unpalatable truth due to "Secular" reasons. That is very short sighted indeed. There

should be a free and frank discussion on the subject.

11th of July is the United Nation's World Population Day. I appeal for an open and

candid discussion on the subject of Population, Resources and Environment. It is high time the entire Humanity starts thinking about this.

With best wishes for the survival of Mother Earth and all its residents: human, animal, birds, marine, plant life as well as inanimate such as land, water and air.

Nidhi Prabha Tewari, Democracy Connect, New Delhi*

My congratulations and thanks to all of you for working on rejuvenating our rivers.

May I suggest one line for dialogue- We appreciate and acknowledge all that has gone well or is working well- no matter how big or small, like 100 things that have worked well in Ganga's

rejuvenation over the years. For people like us who are hardly doing anything for this issue, this will inspire us to do

whatever little we can and not think that our contribution will make no difference.

Ramesh Jalan, UNDP, New Delhi (Response2) *

The immediate impact of human-induced global warming will be on the hydrological cycle, as increased energy drives a more intensive process of evaporation and precipitation. The regional

impacts of this change will vary, but are anticipated to include in different places more intensive

but shorter precipitation events and increased drought risk.

Over much of north-western India a strong decrease in annual precipitation since 1979 has been observed that may aggravate the water stress in the region. Water supply in areas fed by glacial

and snow melt water from the Hindu Kush and Himalayas, on which hundreds of millions of

people in India depend will be adversely affected due to climate change. The Ganga river basin region would be one of the worst affected.

In particular, there are major dangers associated with changes to river systems including the

Niger in West Africa and the Ganga river in India. The people dependent on the perennial rivers for water needs would be worst affected. By 2020, in Africa, 75-250 million people will be subject

to increased water stress as a result of climate change. Similar water stress would be witnessed

in several parts of India.

Reduced access to water and increased risk of inundation will result due to climate change impacts. Ecosystems will shift in space, in species composition and agro-ecological boundaries

will accommodate new growing seasons. Immediate impacts may include reduced access to

water and food, as well as increased hazards including greater exposure to vector borne

diseases. Further, crop production in India would be adversely affected due to climate change.

In parts of Africa and South Asia, inter-annual variability in rainfall is already an immediate challenge for the poorest households. There is an urgent need for investment planning in water

including a focus on improving adaptive capacity and building climate resilience into economic

and social planning decisions at all levels. Considering the convergence of water, climate, energy and food security issues there is a need to mainstream responses to climate change across

development sectors. For water security of the nation we need to ensure the sustainability of our river systems particularly the Ganga which is the lifeline of millions in the country.

An article highlighting the above issues is available at: http://www.eldis.org/go/topics/resource-

guides/climate-change/key-issues/water-management-and-climate-change

Many thanks to all who contributed to this query!

If you have further information to share on this topic, please send it to Solution Exchange for the Climate Change Community in India at se-clmt_se-wes@solutionexchange-un.net.in with the subject heading “Re: [se-clmt] Query: Ensuring Sustainability of River Ganga - Experiences; Advice. Additional Reply.” Disclaimer: In posting messages or incorporating these messages into synthesized responses, the UN accepts no responsibility for their veracity or authenticity. Members intending to use or transmit the information contained in these messages should be aware that they are relying on their own judgment.

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