Lok Sabha Question No. 825 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-12-04
Subject: Pollution in Ganga River
Ministry: JAL SHAKTI
Asked by: Shri Naveen Jindal

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF JAL SHAKTI

## DEPARTMENT OF WATER RESOURCES, RIVER DEVELOPMENT & GANGA REJUVENATION

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 825

ANSWERED ON 04.12.2025

## POLLUTION IN GANGA RIVER

## 825. SHRI NAVEEN JINDAL:

Will the Minister of JAL SHAKTI be pleased to state:

- (a) the assessment of the Government about the magnitude and quantum of pollution in the Ganga river;
- (b)  the  action  taken  by  the  Government  to  curb  the  pollution  in  the  Ganga  river  during  the  last  five years, year-wise;

(c)  the  physical  targets  set  and  achievements  made  along  with  funds  allocated  and  actually  utilised during the said period, year-wise;

(d) the physical achievements made and the expenditure incurred during the ongoing fiscal year upto November, 2025; and

(e) whether the Government is contemplating some change in strategy/programmes/schemes to tackle the situation in a more comprehensive and effective manner since the pollution in the Ganga river is a recurring issue and if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR JAL SHAKTI

## ( SHRI RAJ BHUSHAN CHOUDHARY )

(a) As  per  the  available  information,   total  sewage  generated  in  the  5  Ganga  States  (main  stem)  is about 10,160 MLD against which the available STP capacity is 7820 MLD and  to bridge the gap, the projects of 1,996 MLD are at various stages of completion.

Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), carries out manual water quality monitoring of the river Ganga at 112 locations across five Ganga main-stem States- Uttarakhand-19; Uttar Pradesh-41; Bihar33; Jharkhand-04; and West Bengal-15.

As per CPCB report on Polluted River Stretch (PRS) 2025 following information about Ganga main stem pollution is available:

## Ganga Main Stem - State-wise Comparison (2018 vs 2025)

| State         | 2018 Polluted Stretch   | Priority (2018)   | 2025 Stretch     | Polluted Priority (2025)   | Trend/Observation                |
|---------------|-------------------------|-------------------|------------------|----------------------------|----------------------------------|
| Uttarakhand   | Haridwar → Sultanpur    | IV                | No PRS           | -                          | Improved and PRS stretch removed |
| Uttar Pradesh | Kannauj→ Varanasi       | IV                | Bijnor →Tarighat | IV / V                     | Partially improved               |

| Bihar       | Buxar to Bhagalpur        | V   | Bhagalpur D/S Khalgaon D/S →   | V   | Marginal pollution remains   |
|-------------|---------------------------|-----|--------------------------------|-----|------------------------------|
| Jharkhand   | No PRS                    | -   | No PRS                         | -   | -                            |
| West Bengal | Triveni → Diamond Harbour | III | Baharampore Diamond Harbour →  | V   | improved                     |

Based on the water quality data (median values) of the river Ganga for the year 2025 (January to August), the following observations are made.

(i) pH & Dissolved Oxygen (DO) are the most critical parameters of river health. The pH & DO of River Ganga meet the required norms for bathing criteria at all the locations of River Ganga.

(ii) Water quality of river Ganga is conforming with the bathing criteria w.r.t. Bio- chemical Oxygen Demand (BOD) in the entire stretch of river Ganga in Uttarakhand, Jharkhand, Bihar & West Bengal, except the following locations/stretches:

Farrukhabad to Purana Rajapur, Kanpur.

Dalmau, Raibareilly.

D/s Mirzapur to Tarighat, Ghazipur (except two locations namely U/s Varanasi, After confluence Gomti & U/s Ghazipur) in Uttar Pradesh.

As  per  the  biomonitoring  conducted  during  2024-25  at  50  locations  along  river  Ganga  and  its tributaries and 26 locations along River Yamuna and its tributaries, the biological water quality (BWQ) predominantly ranged from 'Good' to 'Moderate'. The presence of diverse benthic macro-invertebrate species indicates the ecological potential of the rivers to sustain aquatic life.

(b) NMCG has sanctioned 69 projects at a cost of ₹ 11,741 crore to create a total sewage treatment capacity of 2,161 MLD, during the last 5 financial years (i.e 2021-22 to 2025-26 till November 2025) , to curb the pollution in the River Ganga & its tributaries, the details are as under;

| Financial Year          |   No. of Projects Sanctioned | MLD   | Sanctioned Cost (Rs. in crore)   |
|-------------------------|------------------------------|-------|----------------------------------|
| 2021-22                 |                            4 | 122   | 663                              |
| 2022-23                 |                           28 | 1,166 | 6115                             |
| 2023-24                 |                           15 | 324   | 1600                             |
| 2024-25                 |                           13 | 401   | 2207                             |
| 2025-26 (Till Nov 2025) |                            9 | 148   | 1156                             |
| Total                   |                           69 | 2,161 | 11,741                           |

(c) & (d) The physical targets and achievements during the last five years are as under;

|                                    | Physical Progress                       | Physical Progress   | Financial Progress             | Financial Progress                 |
|------------------------------------|-----------------------------------------|---------------------|--------------------------------|------------------------------------|
| Year                               | Target Sewage Treatment Capacity ( MLD) | Achievement (MLD)   | Funds Allocated (Rs. in crore) | Disbursement byNMCG (Rs. in crore) |
| 2020-21                            | 140                                     | 64                  | 1,300                          | 1,340                              |
| 2021-22                            | 280                                     | 374                 | 1,900                          | 1,893                              |
| 2022-23                            | 615                                     | 582                 | 2,500                          | 2,259                              |
| 2023-24                            | 1000                                    | 711                 | 2,400                          | 2,396                              |
| 2024-25                            | 473                                     | 612                 | 3,000                          | 2,589                              |
| 2025-26 (Till 27 th November 2025) | 600                                     | 83                  | 3,400                          | 1192                               |

- (e) The  Government has adopted a comprehensive, technology-driven strategy for the cleaning and rejuvenation of the river Ganga. In addition to introducing innovations in sewage management such as the interception and diversion approach, the Hybrid Annuity Model (HAM), and provision for 15-year Operation  &  Maintenance  (O&M)  of  assets  for  improved  sustainability;  several  new  and  integrated measures have been taken to ensure long-term effectiveness:

## Integrated River Basin Management (RBM):

To reinforce the integrated approach towards river basin management, a dedicated RBM cell has been established.  Under  this  cell,  a  Thematic  Expert  Group  has  been  created  to  address  issues  related  to plastic  pollution  in  the  river  Ganga. Climate  resilience  and  disaster  risk  reduction  are  integrated  into basin planning.

## Operations and Maintenance :

A large number of STPs are now in operation and maintenance phase and dedicated O&M cell has been established to manage the created assets in an efficient and optimal manner.

## Drainage and Pollution Monitoring :

A  LiDAR  and  Drone  survey  are  used  to  identify  all  drains  discharging  into  the  river,  enabling  a comprehensive response to drainage-related challenges.

To  enhance  monitoring,  the  National  Mission  for  Clean  Ganga  (NMCG)  has  implemented parametric monitoring systems for water quality at all Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs) and installed CCTV  cameras  to  facilitate  physical  monitoring  of  STP  operations.  Public  disclosure  of  STP

performance  data  further  strengthens  the  accountability  framework  for  infrastructure  established  by NMCG.

## Urban River Management Planning :

For integrated planning and urban river rejuvenation, NMCG in collaboration with NIUA has promoted preparation of Urban River Management Plans with focus on River sensitive Master Plans for the city. Additionally, two Centers of Excellence have been created to focus on emerging areas such as Decision Support System, Characterizing emerging pollutants, Managed Aquifer Recharge models, and Digital Twin for the river Ganga.

## Nature-Based Solutions , Wetland  Rejuvenation  and  Biodiversity Parks for Flood Plain Restoration :

The Government has also promoted nature-based solutions, including constructed wetlands , as part of the  overall  river  rejuvenation  strategy. A  focus  on  rejuvenation  of  higher  order  streams/small  rivers through mainstreaming of 'NbS' (Nature based Solutions) for effective abatement of pollution coming from hinterland of River Ganga basin

Wetland and spring rejuvenation initiatives are integrated into basin planning, recognizing their role in  maintaining base flows and groundwater recharge. The main activities also include to improve the riparian buffer that provides for improved habitat for both terrestrial and aquatic biodiversity.

NMCG  is  one  of  its  kind  program  which  is  unique  in  India  and  is  evolving  towards  a comprehensive template for river rejuvenation for the country. The programmatic flexibility provided by the the Government to the Mission and the program has ensured that mission is continuously evolving and  adapting  to  emerging  requirements. The  program  has   moved  from  piecemeal  approach  to  an integrated  basin  approach  with  assured  financing  and  15-year  O&M;  it  further  expanded  coverage  to tributaries  and  smaller  towns,  strengthening  FSSM/SM,  biodiversity,  and  wetlands;  currently  the program  is  focused  on  saturation  strategy  through  creation  of  adequate  sewage  treatment  capacity  in towns  on  Ganga  main  stem  and  important  tributaries,  ecological  restoration  of  rivers  through  nature based  solutions  (NbS),  pilots  for  rejuvenation  of  small  rivers,  urban  river  management  (URMPs, RCA/GRCA), basin governance (RBM unit), and programmatic circular economy scale-up.

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