Lok Sabha Updated on Namami Gange Programme

Under Namami Gange Programme (NGP), during last three years, a total of 51 new sewerage treatment plants having total capacity of 936.42 MLD have been completed as per below mentioned state-wise details

Under Namami Gange Programme, 161 sewerage infrastructure projects have been taken up with a sanctioned cost of Rs.24581 crore for creation and rehabilitation of 5015 Million Litres per Day (MLD) of Sewage Treatment Plant (STP) capacity and laying of 5,134 km of sewerage network, out of which 92 projects have been completed resulting in creation and rehabilitation of 1,643 MLD of STP capacity and laying of 4,156 km sewerage network.

Some of the projects undertaken as part of the Namami Gange Program had faced delays due to a variety of factors. Salient reasons for delays in the project are delays in project award due to restructuring, land issues, delay in handing over land, delays in getting permission from National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) and Railways, delays due to Covid-19 etc.

Cleaning of river is a continuous process and Government of India is supplementing the efforts of the State Government in addressing the challenges of pollution in river Ganga and its tributaries by providing financial and technical assistance under Namami Gange Programme. The projects have now taken their pace and efforts are now being made to complete the projects by their scheduled completion timeline.

In order to expedite implementation of the sewerage infrastructure projects by overcoming the bottlenecks and ensure timely completion of projects, the following measures are being taken by National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG):

i.     Regular interaction / discussions / site visits and coordination meetings with state agencies by NMCG.

ii.     Resolving delay in road/railway crossing permissions by conducting high level inter-Ministerial meeting with Railways and NHAI.

iii.    At State level, State Ganga Committees headed by the Chief Secretaries have been constituted for coordinating the Ganga rejuvenation projects between various State agencies and for the first time ever a district level mechanism has been set up in the form of District Ganga Committees (DGC) headed by the District Magistrate to ensure speedy implementation of interventions and projects and for carrying out various activities pertaining to Ganga and its tributaries.

Since inception of Namami Gange Programme, 374 projects have been taken up at an estimated cost of Rs. 31,099 Cr. Out of these, 210 projects have been completed thereby creating / rehabilitating 1,643 MLD of STP capacity, laying of 4,156 km sewerage network, development / rehabilitation of 183 ghats & kunds, 46 crematoria, River Front Development at Patna, creation of 12,38,075 nos. of IHHLs.

Under the Namami Gange Programme, Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) is carrying out water quality assessment of the River Ganga at 97 locations in 5 main stem States through the respective State Pollution Control Boards (SPCBs). As per CPCB data for 2021, the observed water quality of river Ganga indicates that Dissolved Oxygen (DO), which is an indicator of river health, has been found to be within acceptable limits of notified primary bathing water quality criteria and is satisfactory to support the ecosystem of the river for almost the entire stretch of the river Ganga. None of the Ganga Stretches are in priority category I to IV and only two stretches are in Category V with Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD) ranging between 3-6 mg/l as per CPCB categorization of polluted stretch. As a result of multi sectoral interventions, as per comparison of median data of water quality parameters viz., DO, BOD and FC of year 2014 and 2021; DO (Median) has improved at 34 locations; BOD at 44 locations and FC at 25 locations, respectively.

National Mission for Clean Ganga releases funds to State Project Management Groups (SPMGs) on the basis of Annual Action Plans as when demanded. Government of India has released Rs. 12,109.72 crore to NMCG from financial years 2014-15 to 2021-22. Amounts released/expended by NMCG to various agencies, compiled State-wise, during the said period, are given at Annexure-I.

This information was given by the Minister of State, Shri Bishweswar Tudu in a written reply in Lok Sabha today.