Efforts on at war footing to rejuvenate Ganga: Jal Shakti Minister

Ravi S  Singh

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, December 11

Union Minister of State for Jal Shakti Rattan Lal Kataria has stressed that the Union Government was working towards sustainable development in a planned manner.

“This can be seen from the fact that all the sewage treatment projects have been developed by keeping future capacity in mind,” he said while addressing the 5th Indian Water Impact Summitt (IWIS) here.

Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat inaugurated the summit, which will conclude on December 15, with a focus on “Arth Ganga-River conservation synchronised development”.

In effect, it is with an aim to rejuvenate the Ganga and improve the ecology and aesthetics of the areas contiguous of its embankments, while linking the efforts to boost the economy in the areas concerned.

The river passes through five states, namely Uttarakhand, Bihar, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh and Jharkhand.

“The IWIS will forge greater interaction between investors and stakeholders in water sector and promote international cooperation for water and river management,”   Shekhawat said.

The summit has been organised by the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) of the Jal Shakti Ministry and the Centre for Ganga River Basin Management and Studies (cGanga).

Shekhawat said that “Namami Gange” is one of the largest, holistic and successful river conservation programs in the country, which was laying down a model framework for river rejuvenation.

The decisions in this programme are based on studying the unsatisfactory results of previous programs.

Sharing his government’s vision to establish an eco-system where economic development goes hand-in-hand with ecological conservation, Shekhawat said, “This summit is aimed at discussing and disseminating the needs for the modalities of embracing Arth Ganga and the vision of the Prime Minister in sectors that closely interweave with river conservation.”

The IWIS will focus on forging greater interaction between investors and stakeholders in the water sector and promote international cooperation between India and many foreign countries for water and river management.

Emphasising the need for water use efficiency Jal Shakti Ministry Secretary UP Singh,  said there is huge scope of water conservation both at the demand side and supply side management and is required to rejuvenate the river.

Acknowledging the contribution of IITs in shaping and modelling the NamamiGange program, NMCG Director-General Rajiv Ranjan Mishra said, “As part of ‘Gyan Ganga’ initiative, we are engaging with scientists and researchers at the national and international level, to gain from their knowledge and experience.”