The Centre has set a three-year target to rejuvenate the Ganga. “In three years, we want to establish the Environmental flow (E-Flow). Plans to clean River Ganga are likely to commence in six months,” said Uma Bharti, who holds the Ganga Rejuvenation portfolio.
She said there would be several ways of funding for the project.”We will use PPP route, NRI fund has been setup.” World Bank President Jim Yong Kim has already promised to help India in cleaning up the river Ganga.Bharti stressed that efforts have already been initiated to rejuvenate the river and steps taken to address the key problem of pollution from industries and sewage.
“We will not hesitate from learning from anyone. We have no ego that we know the best. If we feel that somebody knows better than us, we will learn from river Rhine, Nile, Thames ...We will learn good things, without any hesitation,” she said.Recently, the Supreme Court had called for a road map to revive the Ganges. The Minister further informed of the plans to link 30 rivers in the interior over the next 10 years to ensure water for drinking and irrigation in areas suffering shortages, the minister said from New Delhi.
The linking of the Ken and Betwa rivers in northern India will be the first such project approved by the government, with the aim to more equitably distribute river water in the country, Bharti said.Meanwhile, the visiting South Australian Premier Jay Weatherill on Wednesday expressed keenness to share his country’s expertise for cleaning up river Ganga. He added that he would like to extend any help that the Indian government needed for a project that is “very close to the Indian PM’s heart”. Weatherill is in the country on a promotional visit to India.
He said that South Australia has proper resources and specialisation in water treatment whose services can be well utilized for cleaning up the river.