Lok Sabha Question No. 2409 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2017-03-16
Subject: Cleaning of Ganga and Yamuna River
Ministry: WATER RESOURCES, RIVER DEVELOPMENT AND GANAGA REJUVENATION
Asked by: SULTAN  AHMED

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF WATER RESOURCES, RIVER DEVELOPMENT & GANGA REJUVENATION

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2409

ANSWERED ON 16.03.2017

## CLEANING OF GANGA AND YAMUNA RIVER

## 2409.       SHRI SULTAN AHMED

## Will  the  Minister  of  WATER  RESOURCES,  RIVER  DEVELOPMENT  AND  GANGA REJUVENATION be pleased to state:

(a) whether the Government has launched any schemes recently to clean Ganga and Yamuna rivers;

(b) if so, the details thereof including achievements made under the Namami Gange project;

(c) the reasons for continued growth in water pollution despite various ongoing schemes;

(d) the quantum of funds spent on various projects/schemes pertaining to Ganga and Yamuna rivers  cleaning  during  each  of  the  last  three  years,  State/UT-wise  along  with  proportional results achieved therefrom; and

(e) the details of implementation bottlenecks observed till date and the action taken in this regard so far?

## ANSWER

THE MINISTER OF STATE (IC) FOR YOUTH AFFAIRS & SPORTS AND MINISTER OF  STATE  FOR  WATER  RESOURCES,  RIVER  DEVELOPMENT  AND  GANGA REJUVENATION

## (SHRI VIJAY GOEL)

(a)  &  (b)  Yes,  Madam.  Government  has  launched  Namami  Gange  Programme.  Namami Gange programme consists of 2 major components, namely, (i) Component A : Comprise of all the ongoing programme (including existing projects sanctioned under  NGRBA programme and (ii) Component B : Comprise of new initiatives for abatement of pollution in river Ganga as well as Yamuna.

The  Namami  Gange  is  under  implementation  covering  short  term,  medium  term  and  long term activities.

Under short term action plan, certain interventions have been visualized under the heading of 'Entry  Level  Activities'  which  covers  development  of  ghats,  crematoria  and  river  surface cleaning activities.

Under  Medium  term  action  plan,  existing  Sewage  Treatment  Plants  (STPs)  and  Effluent Treatment Plants (ETPs) will be upgraded and new STPs and ETPs will be established with an  aim  to  stop  untreated  sewage  and  industrial  waste  falling  in  the  river.  Besides,  rural sanitation has been taken up in the villages in the banks of river Ganga.

The long term action plan involves restoration of wholesomeness of river Ganga, maintaining the ecological and geological integrity of the river.

As on 31 st January 2017, under Namami Gange Programme, 143 projects have sanctioned at an estimated cost of Rs 10,485.62 Crores covering the various components such as sewerage infrastructure, river front development, ghats, crematoria, water quality monitoring stations, rural sanitation, afforestation, bio-diversity etc. Out  of  these,  38  projects  have  been completed.

(c) There  is  no  trend  observed  in  water  quality  to  suggest  continued  growth  of  water pollution  in  River  Ganga.  However,  non-availability  of  sufficient  treatment  capacity  for sewage  generated  from  towns/cities  abutting  River  Ganga  and  untreated  discharges  from industrial  source  are  reasons  among  other  towards  contribution  of  water  pollution  in River Ganga.

(d) The details  of  the  funds  released  to  the  states  during  the  last  three  years  are  given below :

| States         | 2013-14   | 2014-15   |   2015-16 |   Grand Total |
|----------------|-----------|-----------|-----------|---------------|
| Bihar          | 91.14     |           |    120.23 |        211.37 |
| Jharkhand      | 6.26      | 0.97      |     27.83 |         35.06 |
| UP             | 92.30     | 74.58     |    147.58 |        314.46 |
| Uttarakhand    | 17.05     | 4.26      |     30.26 |         51.57 |
| West Bengal    | 48.91     | 73.85     |    185.79 |        308.55 |
| Haryana        |           |           |     30    |         30    |
| Delhi          |           |           |      4.96 |          4.96 |
| Madhya Pradesh |           |           |      3.39 |          3.39 |

- (e) During  the  implementation  of  projects  bottlenecks  like  delay  in  tendering  process, retendering,  non-availability  of  land,  legal  issues,  natural  calamities  like  flood  and earthquakes, delay in permission from local authorities on road cutting/crossing etc. are noticed. The issues are resolved with continuous coordination with the state government at various levels, field visits and quarterly monitoring. Further in order to ensure effective implementation and timely completion of projects, project management  consultants/supervision  consultants  are  being  appointed  by  the  state government.
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