Centre clears projects worth Rs 660 crores to clean tributaries of River Ganga

According to the Jal Shakti Ministry, among the projects which were approved are ‘Interception, Diversion, and Treatment Works for Saharanpur Town’ for River Hindon, ‘Rejuvenation of Chamunda Mai Pond’ in Garh Mukhteshwar, ‘Environmental Upgradation of Shivna River’ in Mandsaur, Madhya Pradesh, ‘Evaluation of Natural Farming Practices on Water and Energy Savings’, and ‘Implementation of Membrane-based soil-less agriculture.

New Delhi: The Centre on Friday sanctioned 11 projects worth Rs 660 crores to clean tributaries of River Ganga, according to an official release. According to the Jal Shakti Ministry, among the projects which were approved are ‘Interception, Diversion, and Treatment Works for Saharanpur Town’ for River Hindon, ‘Rejuvenation of Chamunda Mai Pond’ in Garh Mukhteshwar, ‘Environmental Upgradation of Shivna River’ in Mandsaur, Madhya Pradesh, ‘Evaluation of Natural Farming Practices on Water and Energy Savings’, and ‘Implementation of Membrane-based soil-less agriculture.

Two projects including ‘Construction of Electric Crematorium’ at Kalyani, West Bengal, and ‘Development of Cremation Ghat’ at Paudi Garhwal were also approved. In addition to this, two projects of River Front Development in Badrinath and two big projects for Septage Management in Uttarakhand and West Bengal were also approved in the 42nd meeting of the Executive Committee of National Mission for Clean Ganga was organised on Thursday under the chairmanship of G. Ashok Kumar, DG, NMCG.

The estimated cost of the project of sewerage management for cleaning River Hindon in Saharanpur is Rs. 577.23 crores including the construction of 135 MLD STP, creation of interception and diversion structures, and laying of a sewer line. “Cleaning of Ganga’s tributaries has been the prime focus of the Namami Gange Programme,” said an official.

Recognizing the need for Faecal Sludge and Septage Management for effective decentralized wastewater treatment, the NMCG approved two projects of Septage Management in the meeting. While one project ‘Co-treatment of Septage at existing STPs of Haridwar (150 KLD), Rishikesh (50 KLD), Srinagar (30 KLD) and DevPrayag (5 KLD)’ covers the State of Uttarakhand, another project ‘Integrated Septage Treatment Plant for Burdwan Municipality’ focuses on prevention of flow of sewage in River Banka, a tributary of Ganga in West Bengal.

The estimated costs of these projects are Rs. 8.6 crore and Rs. 6.46 crore respectively including operation and maintenance of the Faecal Sludge Treatment Plants (FSTPs) for 5 years. "The principal objective of these projects is to further improve the water quality of River Ganga by avoiding the discharge of untreated Septage from unsewered areas," said an official.

The major components of the ‘Environmental Upgradation of Shivna River’ in Mandsaur, Madhya Pradesh cost Rs. 28.68 crores including prevention of pollution from point and nonpoint sources, construction of ghat, development of crematorium and idol immersion facility. The project envisages abatement of pollution in the river and improves the environmental conditions of Shivna River.

The project on ‘Rejuvenation of Chamunda Mai Pond’ at an estimated cost of Rs. 81.76 lakh includes cleaning, desilting, dewatering, basic constructed wetland system, water treatment, aeration system, plantation, fencing, barbed wire, etc. will help in recharging groundwater and act as a source of water for the local population. It will also improve the overall aesthetics and hygiene of the village. The total area of the pond to be rejuvenated is about 10,626 sq. m.

The two projects of Riverfront Development in Badrinath, Uttarakhand amounting to Rs. 32.15 crore have also been approved under Clean Ganga Fund.One of these projects includes the construction of a river embankment, promenade, public amenities like drinking water facilities, public toilets, etc., seating space, pavilions, and ghats along River Ganga. The ‘Construction of Electric Crematorium’ at Kalyani, West Bengal will cost Rs 4.20 crore, and the ‘Development of Cremation Ghat’ at Paudi Garhwal will cost Rs 1.82 crore.