River Ganga is one of the largest rivers in India, and is also one of the largest river basins in India spreading over 11 states which covers around 40% of the total population of the country. It has a very high religious significance for Hindus. Along both sides of the river are situated some of the world's oldest cities and towns like Allahabad, Varanasi and Patna. Unfortunately, according to some studies it is the fifth most polluted river in the world.

To reduce the pollution of Ganga, a number of initiatives were undertaken in the past to clean the river and to make her pollution free, but the initiatives failed to deliver expected outcomes. After the elections, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, acknowledged to work closely to clean the river and provide enough support and funds to control the pollution of the river. As a result, Namami Gange project was initiated after the approval from the cabinet of the Government in their first budget of July 2014. The Government announced Rs. 2037 Crores toward the project.

The mission is to clean and protect the Ganga, by arranging significant new funding and implementation features. Namami Gange is 100% centrally funded project. The intention is to quickly increase the progress of the Ganga clean-up operations. This project aims at making Ganga pollution free by collating the existing ongoing efforts so that a concrete action plan for future can be created. To keep Ganga clean, it is required to improve sewerage infrastructure along the river, establishing catchment area treatment plants, creating public awareness and protecting flood plains of Ganga.

There are various ministries of the Government working together on this project to come up with common action plan to rejuvenate Gange. Few of the main ministries involved in this work are - Water Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation ministry, Environment ministry, Tourism ministry, Forests & Climate Change ministry, Shipping ministry, Urban Development ministry, Tourism ministry, Rural Development ministry, Drinking Water and Sanitation ministry.

The main cause of pollution in Ganga is broadly classified into following main reasons -

• Human waste: The River flows through many cities and towns with huge population and hence a large proportion of the sewage water with higher organic waste gets discharged into the Ganges through domestic water usage.
• Industrial waste: Due to the establishment of industrial cities and factories along the River, countless dangerous chemicals and untreated wastes are discharged in the river which contributes widely to the pollution of the Ganga.
• Religious events: During festival seasons, thousands of people bathe in the River to clean themselves from their past sins due to religious sentiments. As a result, various materials like food, waste or leaves are unnecessarily added to the Ganga which adds to its increasing pollution levels.

Different studies have been conducted from time to time which showed alarming pollution levels in the river. A systematic classification done on the River waters under the categories like - safe for drinking, safe for bathing, safe for agriculture, and excessive pollution, have shown that Ganga has excessive pollution and it is in a very contaminated state. A coliform bacteria level in the Ganga is shown to be at 5500 approximately, which is very high and is definitely not safe for agricultural use or good for drinking and bathing. In another study, it was found that people living along the sides of Ganga banks in UP, Bihar and West Bengal have more chances of getting affected by diseases like cancer, than anywhere else in the country.

Cleaning Efforts Done Before Namami Gange Initiative

Ganga Action Plan was a program launched in the year 1986 to reduce the pollution in the river by minimizing waste load onto the river, but the result of this plan was not very significant and the pollution levels in the river were not reduced and as a result the plan was withdrawn.

National River Ganga Basin Authority (NRGBA) was established in the year 2009 with the same mission to clean Ganga. For the first time ‘Ganga’ was declared as the national river of India under the program that was chaired by Prime Minister of India and its members as chief ministers of the states through which the Ganga flows. This program was better in a way that it took into consideration the lessons learned from the failure of Ganga Action Plan project. In 2011, the World Bank approved $1 billion aid for the National Ganga River Basin Authority to help rejuvenate the river and the work is in progress on it.

Supreme Court of India has been working very closely on giving directions on the closing and the shifting of many industries and factories along the River Ganga. With their efforts in 2010, the Government declared the river stretch between Gaumukh and Uttarkashi as eco-sensitive zone and so, no commercial establishments can be setup along the Ganga River.

Namami Gange Project

Namami Gange project will focus on pollution reduction such as intercepting and diverting waste water after treatment that flows through open drains. This treatment will be done via bio-remediation, by using innovative technologies and adopting sewage treatment plants and effluent treatment plants.

One of the most important aspects of this project is that the approach is strengthened by socio-economic benefits that the project will deliver in terms of job creation, better and improved livelihoods and good health benefits to the vast population that resides near the River and is dependent on the River.

Key highlights of action items included in Namami Gange project are:

• Ensuring workable actions for management of municipal sewage – This will be done by prioritization and coordination with Ministry of Urban Development. Central government will provide incentives and additional central grants for states to create and establish sewerage infrastructure, and to expand coverage of sewerage infrastructure along the banks of the Ganga
• Managing sewage from Rural Areas – This will be done under the ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation scheme for all Gram Panchayats surrounding Ganga to stop from open defecation in next few years. This is targeted to be completed by year 2022
• Managing Industrial discharge – This will be done by making Zero Liquid Discharge (ZLD) mandatory with the inclusion of real time quality monitoring of the water and the rationalized water tariff to encourage reuse
• In addition to the restoration and the conservation of wetlands, river regulatory zones on Ganga Banks will be formed. Farmers will be trained to adopt rational agricultural practices by adopting efficient irrigation methods
• Ecological renewal by conservation of aquatic life and biodiversity will be given importance
• Promotion of Tourism and Shipping in a balanced and supportable manner will be given importance
• Last but not the least, knowledge management on Ganga through Ganga Knowledge Centre leading to a Ganga University of River Sciences will be done

Along with the long term objectives, various short term objectives are laid and actions are taken to achieve quick results. To achieve short term objectives few key areas that are identified and worked upon are:

• Restoration and up-gradation of existing sewage treatment plants
• Building sewerage infrastructure alongside Ganga at identified locations
• River Ghats development in selected cities and towns
• Reduction in industrial pollution
• Improving and building capacity and capabilities of urban local bodies
• Conservation of green vegetation along Ganga
• Conservation of Aquatic life (Dolphin, Turtles, Ghariyals)
• Using GIS technology for data and spatial analysis
• Defining guidelines for sand mining in Ganga
• Communication and public involvement activities

Clean Ganga Fund (CGF)

Clean Ganga Fund (CGF) is established with approval from the cabinet to appeal private contributions globally, and for encouraging participation from people in cleaning Ganga. The funds will be utilized for various activities defined under Namami Gange project like - controlling pollution, setting up of waste treatment and disposal plants, maintaining and conservation of the biotic diversity, research and development on innovative projects and new technologies, monitoring real time data analysis and reporting.

CGF is utilized for improving the pollution levels from the contributions received from the residents within or outside the country. It is operated via bank account by a Trust. Domestic donors contributing to the fund would get tax benefits. Foreign donors could also get suitable tax exemptions or benefits as per their countries’ law, wherever permissible. A daughter fund is being setup in other jurisdictions or countries where there is large interest in donation for such project like in USA, UK, UAE and Singapore. It will provide tax benefits to donors in their respective jurisdictions or countries.

Notable Contributions to CGF

At a recent program in Kollam organized by Mata Amritanandamayi (better known as Amma) for her contribution of Rs. 100 crore for the construction of toilets for poor village residents along-side and the surrounding areas of the River Ganga. The finance Minister, Arun Jaitley emphasized that the Centre is committed to make the Namami Gange project a 100% success in a period of three to four years of time. Another Rs 100 crore is expected be given by Amma for the program on a later date. This contribution has sent a very positive message across the world that those committed to the cause should contribute. This would help in establishing that this project is not merely funded by Government contributions that will go from the budget but is every ones project whoever wants to see clean Ganga. He said that Rs 100 crore is a significant amount as it comes from a single institution. He also adds that with this contribution the project will get more importance when a saint like her takes the first step towards cleaning Ganga. It will send a message across the country and the world to participate in this initiative. Prime Minister Modi thanked Amma and twitted for her contribution towards 'Namami Gange' project.

The Prime Minister, Narendra Modi and Amma had a meeting few months back when he discussed the possibility of Amma supporting the Government’s initiative on the Clean Ganga Project. It is learnt that during the meeting, the Prime Minister had conveyed his gratitude to various initiatives taken by Amma on environment protection and improvements, which according to him were very much in line with his own Swachh Bharat program.