Namami Gange

Programme
 Namami Gange Programme

• ‘Namami Gange Programme’, is an Integrated Conservation Mission,

approved as ‘Flagship Programme’ by the Union Government in June 2014
with budget outlay of Rs.20,000 Crore to accomplish the twin objectives of
effective abatement of pollution, conservation and rejuvenation of National
River Ganga.
 Main pillars of the Namami Gange
Programme are:

• Sewerage Treatment Infrastructure

• River-Surface Cleaning
• Afforestation
• Industrial Effluent Monitoring
• River-Front Development
• Bio-Diversity
• Public Awareness
• Ganga Gram
• Its implementation has been divided into Entry-Level Activities (for immediate
visible impact), Medium-Term Activities (to be implemented within 5 years of time
frame) and Long-Term Activities (to be implemented within 10 years).
The key achievements under Namami Gange programme are:-
• Creating Sewerage Treatment Capacity:- 63 sewerage management projects
under implementation in the States of Uttarakhand,Uttar Pradesh, Bihar,
Jharkhand and West Bengal.12 new sewerage management Projects Launched in
these states.Work is under construction for creating Sewerage capacity of 1187.33
(MLD).Hybrid Annuity PPP Model based two projects has been initiated for
Jagjeetpur, Haridwar and Ramanna, Varanasi.
• Creating River-Front Development:-28 River-Front Development projects and 33
Entry level Projects for construction, modernization and renovation of 182 Ghats
and 118 crematoria has been initiated.
• River Surface Cleaning:-River Surface cleaning for collection of floating solid waste
from the surface of the Ghats and River and its disposal are afoot and pushed into
service at 11 locations.
• Bio-Diversity Conservation:- Several Bio-Diversity conservation projects are namely:
Biodiversity Conservation and Ganga Rejuvenation, Fish and Fishery Conservation in
Ganga River, Ganges River Dolphin Conservation Education Programme has been
initiated. 5 Bio-Diversity center’s at Dehradun, Narora, Allahabad, Varanasi and
Barrackpore has been developed for restoration of identified priority species.
• Afforestation:- Forestry interventions for Ganga through Wildlife Institute of
India; Central Inland Fisheries Research Institute and Centre for
Environment Education has been initiated.Forestry interventions for Ganga
has been executed as per the Detailed Project Report prepared by Forest
Research Institute, Dehradun for a period of 5 years (2016-2021) at project
cost of Rs.2300 Crores. Work has been commenced in 7 districts of
Uttarakahnd for medicinal plants.
• Public Awareness:- A series of activities such as events, workshops,
seminars and conferences and numerous IEC activities were organized to
make a strong pitch for public outreach and community participation in the
programme. Various awareness activities through rallies, campaigns,
exhibitions, shram daan, cleanliness drives, competitions, plantation drives
and development and distribution of resource materials were organized and
for wider publicity the mass mediums such as TV/Radio, print media
advertisements, advertorials, featured articles and advertorials were
published. Gange Theme song was released widely and played on digital
media to enhance the visibility of the programme. NMCG ensured presence
at Social Media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, You Tube etc.
• Industrial Effluent Monitoring:- The number of Grossly Polluting Industries (GPIs)
in April, 2019 are 1072. Regulation and enforcement through regular and surprise
inspections of GPIs is carried out for compliance verification against stipulated
environmental norms. The GPIs are also inspected on annual basis for compliance
verification of the pollution norms and process modification, wherever required
through third party technical institutes. First round of inspection of GPIs by the
third-party technical institutes has been carried out in 2017. Second round of
inspection of GPIs has been completed in 2018. Out of 961 GPIs inspected in
2018, 636 are complying, 110 are non-complying and 215 are self-closed. Action
has been taken against 110 non-complying GPIs and are issued closure directions
under Section 5 of the E(P) Act. Online Continuous Effluent Monitoring Stations
(OCEMS) connectivity established to CPCB server in 885 out of 1072 GPIs.
• Ganga Gram: Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation (MoDWS) identified
1674 Gram Panchayats situated on the bank of River Ganga in 5 State
(Uttarakhand,Uttar Pradesh,Bihar,Jharkhand,West Bengal). Rs. 578 Crores
has been released to Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation (MoDWS)
for construction of toilets in 1674 Gram Panchayats of 5 Ganga Basin States.
Out of the targeted 15, 27,105 units, MoDWS has completed construction of
8, 53,397 toilets. Consortium of 7 IITs has been engaged in the preparation
of Ganga River basin Plan and 65 villages has been adopted by 13 IITs to
develop as model villages. UNDP has been engaged as the executing agency
for rural sanitation programme and to develop Jharkhand as a model State
at an estimated cost of Rs. 127 Crore.
• National Mission for Clean Ganga, endeavors to deploy best available
knowledge and resources across the world for Ganga rejuvenation. Clean
Ganga has been a perennial attraction for many international countries that
have expertise in river rejuvenation. Countries such as Australia, United
Kingdom, Germany, Finland, Israel etc. have shown interest in collaborating
with India for Ganga rejuvenation. Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs)
were signed with various Central Ministries viz.- Ministry of Human
Resource Development, Ministry of Rural Development, Ministry of
Railways, Ministry of Shipping, Ministry of Tourism, Ministry of Ayush,
Ministry of Petroleum, Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, Ministry of
Drinking Water & Sanitation and Ministry of Agriculture for synergizing the
Government schemes.
• The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi
approved the flagship "Namami Gange” programme which integrates the
efforts to clean and protect the Ganga River in a comprehensive manner.
• Marking a major shift in implementation, the Government is focusing on
involving people living on the banks of the river to attain sustainable results.
Drawing from the lesson learned from the previous implementation, the
program also focuses on involving the States and grassroots levels
institutions such as Urban Local Bodies and Panchayati Raj Institutions in
implementation. The program would be implemented by the National
Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG), and its state counterpart organizations
i.e., State Program Management Groups (SPMGs). NMCG will also establish
field offices wherever necessary.
Why we need "Namami Gange" programme?

• River Ganga has significant economic, environmental and cultural value in

India.
• Rising in the Himalayas and flowing to the Bay of Bengal, the river traverses
a course of more than 2,500 km through the plains of north and eastern
India.
• The Ganga basin - which also extends into parts of Nepal, China and
Bangladesh - accounts for 26 per cent of India's landmass.
• The Ganga also serves as one of India's holiest rivers whose cultural and
spiritual significance transcends the boundaries of the basin.
 What are the pollution threats to Ganga?

• Rapidly increasing population, rising standards of living and exponential

growth of industrialization and urbanization have exposed water resources
to various forms of degradation.
• The deterioration in the water quality of Ganga impacts the people
immediately.
• Ganga has become unfit even for bathing during lean seasons.
• The impacts of infrastructural projects in the upper reaches of the river
Ganga raise issues.
 How "Namami Gange" programme works?

• In order to implement "Namami Gange" Programme, a three-tier mechanism has been

proposed for project monitoring comprising of:
• A high-level task force chaired by Cabinet Secretary assisted by NMCG at the national
level,
• State level committee chaired by Chief Secretary assisted by SPMG at the state level
and
• District level committee chaired by the District Magistrate.
• "Namami Gange" will focus on pollution abatement interventions namely Interception,
diversion & treatment of wastewater flowing through the open drains through bio-
remediation/appropriate in-situ treatment/use of innovative technologies/sewage
treatment plants (STPs)/effluent treatment plant (ETPs) rehabilitation and augmentation
of existing STPs and immediate short-term measures for arresting pollution at exit points
on river front to prevent inflow of sewage etc.
 Salient features of "Namami Gange"
programme
• Over Rs. 20,000 crore has been sanctioned in the 2014-2015 budget for the next 5 years.
• Will cover 8 states, 47 towns & 12 rivers under the project.
• Over 1,632-gram panchayats on the banks of Ganga to be made open defecation-free by
2022.
• Several ministries are working with nodal Water Resources Ministry for this project
includes - Environment, Urban Development, Shipping, Tourism and Rural Development
Ministries.
• Prime focus will be on involving people living on the river's banks in this project.
• Under the aegis of National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) & State Program
Management Groups (SPMGs) States and Urban Local Bodies and Panchayati Raj
institutions will be involved in this project.
 ..contd.

• Setting river-centric urban planning process to facilitate better citizen

connects, through interventions at Ghats and Riverfronts.
• Expansion of coverage of sewerage infrastructure in 118 urban habitations
on banks of Ganga.
• Development of rational agricultural practices & efficient irrigation
methods.
• Ganga Knowledge Centre.
 Key Functions

To achieve the objectives, NMCG shall carry out the following key functions namely:
• Implement the work program of National Ganga River Basin Authority (NGRBA).
• Implement the World Bank supported National Ganga River Basin Project.
• Coordinate and oversee the implementation of projects sanctioned by
Government of India under NGRBA.
• Undertake any additional work or functions as may be assigned by Ministry of
Water Resources, Rural development & GJ in the area of conservation of river
Ganga.
 …contd.

• Make rules and regulations for the conduct of the affairs of the NMCG and
add or amend, vary or rescind them from time to time.
• Accept or to provide any grant of money, loan securities or property of any
kind and to undertake and accept the management of any endowment
trust, fund or donation not inconsistent with the objectives of NMCG.
• Take all such action and to enter all such actions as may appear necessary or
incidental for the achievements of the objectives of the NGRBA.