The draft of the Detailed Project Report on forestry interventions for a clean Ganga is expected to be submitted to the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) in the second week of February. After necessary approval, the final DPR could be submitted to the Union Government in the third week of March, said Forest Research Institute director Dr Savita.
Talking to The Pioneer at the sidelines of the CASFoS convocation programme here on Sunday, the FRI director informed that meetings with four of the five stakeholder states had been completed while the same would be held in Uttarakhand in the near future.
She said, “Following meetings, consultations and incorporation of suggestions made by stakeholder States, we are hoping that the draft DPR on forestry interventions for a clean Ganga will be ready in the second week of February. After it is approved by the NMCG, Government of India, we expect that the final DPR will be ready in the third week of March,” she informed.
It is pertinent to mention here that as part of the National Mission for Clean Ganga, the FRI was given the task of preparing a DPR on forestry interventions aimed at augmenting water flow in the Ganga and for treating the water through biological filters. It should be mentioned here that while inaugurating a stakeholders’ workshop here last year, the Union minister for Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation, Uma Bharti had stated that effects of forestry interventions in the Clean Ganga Mission should start becoming visible by July 2018.
Several rounds of consultations and workshops have been held so far in the five stakeholder States-Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal by FRI so far. In addition to the five stakeholder States and the MoEFCC, various ministries including the Defence Ministry- Eco Task Force, Indo Tibetan Border Police Force and other bodies from various ministries concerned are involved in the mission among other stakeholders.
The forestry interventions for clean Ganga is expected to focus on varied aspects including public awareness, public participation, plantation of medicinal plants and fruit trees along with income generation activities among other aspects.