Gadkari urges Hardeep Puri to expedite SWM projects in towns along Ganges

Ravi S.Singh

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, July 9

Union Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation Minister Nitin Gadkari held a meeting with Union Minister of State for Urban Affairs Hardeep Singh Puri on Monday and urged him to expedite Solid Waste Management (SWM) projects in towns along the Ganges.

During the meeting Gadkari said while the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG)  is executing over 250 projects for liquid waste management through STPs, and also  projects for development of ghats and crematoria in the five states along Ganga, the river will not be totally clean unless the problem of managing solid waste is addressed expeditiously.

As many as 97 towns have been identified along River Ganga, spread over the five states of Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal. 

During the discussions with Puri,  Gadkari suggested putting the related DPR making  on fast track. He pitched for exploration regarding re-use of the waste material  for example using plastic waste for road construction or making compost and fertilizers after proper treatment and enrichment of the organic waste. 

Besides, he urged the Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry to ensure, among others, adequate arrangements for tapping of solid waste entering into the river through drains, disposal of the collected waste from ghats, river banks etc.

Puri informed Gadkari that he has already asked Chief Secretaries of the Ganga basin states to achieve 100 per cent Solid Waste Management by this year end.

Also, he has asked for  removal of waste dumps within 1 km of the river and for installation of bar screens on drains falling into the river to prevent solid waste flowing into it.