Namami Gange program ensures effective reduction of pollution and rejuvenation of River Ganga
The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister, Narendra Modi approved the flagship “Namami Gange” programme which integrates the efforts to clean and protect the Ganga River in a comprehensive manner.
The River Ganga is important not only for its cultural and spiritual significance but also because it hosts more than 40% of the country’s population. It travels more than 2500 kilometers in the country. In 2015, the prime minister launched an integrated Ganga conservation mission called ‘Namami Gange’ to arrest the pollution of Ganga River and revive the river.
The Namami Gange program ensures effective abatement of pollution and rejuvenation of the river Ganga by adopting a river basin approach to promote inter-sectoral coordination for comprehensive planning and management and it aims to maintain minimum ecological flows in the river Ganga with the aim of ensuring water quality and environmentally sustainable development.
Out of the 431 projects worth more than 33 thousand crore rupees launched under the mission, 248 have been completed fully till date while 133 projects are under progress. The Namami Ganga project was awarded the UN world restoration Flagship program and it is among the world’s 10 best examples of large scale ecosystem restoration. The mission made it to the list amidst 160 submissions from 60 countries.
National Clean Ganga Mission had also won ‘Public Water agency of the Year’ award in Global water awards 2019 which is given by Global water intelligence. Many countries like Australia, Israel, Germany have shown interest in this river rejuvenation program and are working with the government.
