So far, several attempts have been made to rejuvenate the Ganga but in vain. The NDA has been no different. The cause of the holy river must be taken up in all seriousness
Recently, on July 20, when Congress chief Rahul Gandhi was making an impassioned speech in the lok Sabha during a debate on no-confidence motion against the Modi Government, human rights activists and river activists waited with bated breath, hoping that he would also highlight, among other narratives, the pathetic state of the holy river Ganga. Spearheaded by noted environmentalist Prof GD Agrawal, alias Swami Gyan Swaroop Sanand, these activists have launched a stir for the conservation of river Ganga.
The Gandhi scion had invoked burning issues in the House, such as violence against minorities and Dalits, cow vigilantism and mob lynching, and Rafale deal. But just like the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA), he too failed many river activists, including Sanjay Singh from Jal-Jan Jodo Abhiyan, Ramon Magsaysay Award and Stockholm Water Prize winner Rajendra Singh, also known as ‘waterman of India’, and Dr Agrawal, who has been on a fast-unto-death for the last several months in protest against the Government’s negligence towards the holy river, that now is one of the most polluted rivers in the world.
Eighty six-year-old Agrawal’s health is deteriorating day-by-day. But the Government is yet to speak its mind on the demand of the river expert: To stall all dams on the river and pass the Ganga Protection and Management Bill which has been drafted by the ilk of eminent environmentalists, ex-judges and advocates like Paritosh Tyagi, MC Mehta, Arun Kumar Gupta, Santosh Kumar, Govind Sharma, SS Kulshrestha and Agrawal himself.
Ironically, for long, politicians have used or rather misused the Ganga for garnering votes. Before the 2014 lok Sabha election, the then Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) prime ministerial candidate, Narendra Modi, had said in Varanasi: “Mujhe Ganga maiyya ne bulaya hai (Mother Ganga has summoned me). Main Ganga ka beta hun (I am son of Ganga river)” He promised the people that if voted to power, he would work to bring back the pristine glory of the holy river. He had pledged for making it ‘aviral’ (flowing adequately) and ‘nirmal’ (pure and unpolluted).
After coming to power, the NDA Government approved the Namami Gange programme, an integrated conservation mission as the flagship programme of the Government with a Budget outlay of Rs 20,000 crore to accomplish the twin objectives of effective abatement of pollution, conservation, and rejuvenation of the Ganga. However, while the Prime Minister is yet to deliver on his promises, crores of rupees have gone in vain in the name of cleaning the Ganga as it continues to be in a big mess, as it was recently pointed out by the National Green Tribunal (NGT). The Tribunal rightly observed that the situation of the Ganga was extraordinarily bad and hardly anything effective has been done to clean the river.
A bench headed by NGT chairperson Justice AK Goel lamented that despite claims by authorities, the work done on ground for Ganga rejuvenation was inadequate and called for regular monitoring to improve the situation. The green panel also ordered a survey to seek views of the common people on what they feel on ground about pollution of the Ganga and said that the feedback could be given through e-mail to authorities concerned.
The Tribunal noted so far that nine status reports have been filed before it in the last two years, but results were hardly visible on the ground. A string of measures ordered by it included monthly testing of water samples of the river. Advocate MC Mehta, who filed a petition for the cleaning of the Ganga, told the Bench that the water in the river was unsafe for drinking and there was no hygiene in and around the river. He alleged that there was a lot of water pollution and a lot needs to be done for municipal and industrial waste management.
Though the Modi Government set an ambitious deadline of 2018 to clean the river, it has now been extended to March 2019. The goal seems to be a far-fetched idea, given that only 15 per cent of Rs 20,000 crore Budget has been released in the last four years for the cleaning of Ganga.
Rajendra Singh feels that ignoring the Ganga is akin to cheating one’s mother. For many Hindus, she’s the mother, he said as he referred to Prime Minister Modi’s speech of 2014 when he had sought votes in Varanasi in the name of the river. He rued that they had been writing to the Government regularly to know what is being done to bring its pristine glory back but there has been no answer. To drive home his point, he said that the Government was nonchalant towards the fast undertaken by Agrawal, someone who has in-depth knowledge of the rivers and nature. The Ganga is our national river. Singh argues, “Why can’t we have a national protocol for the national river like the one we have for our national flagIJ”
Sanjay Singh, who is known as ‘waterman of Bundelkhand’ too lamented the Government’s apathy towards the health of the river that is the lifeline for millions of people. A consortium of seven IITs who submitted their report on “Ganga River Basin Management Plan, 2015” is gathering dust in the Government office. It has suggested that the sewage going to the Ganga should be cleaned and used for irrigation. The Monsoon Session is on. It is to be hoped that our elected representatives, irrespective of party loyalty, will take up the cause of Ganga which is not only a source for water for over 40 million people but also a symbol of faith and centre of a healthy ecosystem.
(The writer is Special Correspondent, The Pioneer)
