Ganga Action Plan - Overview
On 14 January 1986, Shri Rajeev Gandhi, then Prime Minister of India, launched the Ganga Action Plan with the main goal of pollution abatement, to improve water quality by intercepting, diverting, and treating domestic sewage and present toxic and industrial chemical wastes from identified grossly polluting units entering the river. The Ganga Action Plan also has the following goals.
- Non-point pollution from agricultural runoff, human defecation, cattle wallowing, and the dumping of unburned and half-burned bodies into the river must be controlled.
- Research and development to preserve the river's biotic diversity and increase its productivity.
- New sewage treatment technologies, such as the Up-flow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket (UASB) and sewage treatment through afforestation, have been successfully developed.
- Rehabilitation of soft-shelled turtles for river pollution abatement has been demonstrated and found to be beneficial.
- Resource recovery options such as methane production for energy generation and aquaculture for revenue generation have been demonstrated.
- To serve as a model for similar action plans in other rivers with severely polluted stretches.
- The ultimate goal of the GAP is to have an integrated river basin management approach that takes into account the various dynamic interactions between abiotic and biotic eco-systems.
Despite some delays in the completion of the first phase of GAP, it has generated significant interest and set the stage for developing a national approach to replicating this programme for the country's other polluted rivers. Through a National River Action Plan, the Government of India proposed extending this model to the national level with appropriate modifications (NRAP). The NRAP primarily draws on the lessons learned and experience gained from the GAP, as well as soliciting input from state governments and other relevant departments/agencies.
What is the Ganga Action Plan?
The Ganga Action Plan [GAP] is widely recognised as one of the most ambitious and long-running interventions by the Indian government, and it has had a significant impact on pollution control policies in the country. It was carried out in two stages and was fully supported by the government.
The Ganga was designated as India's national river under this scheme. GAP was directed by Rajiv Gandhi, and the plan's National River Ganga Basin Authority (NRGBA) was led by the prime minister in collaboration with the chief ministers of the states through which the river flows.
The Indian government first proposed cleaning the Ganga in 1979, but the GAP was launched in 1985 following a survey conducted by the Central Pollution Control Board.
Objectives of Ganga Action Plan
The GAP aimed to control pollution in the most important river in a systematic and planned manner.
- At the time of the Ganga Action Plan's inception in 1985, the goal was to improve Ganga water quality to acceptable standards by preventing pollution from entering the river.
- The Ganga Action Plan prioritized pollution reduction and water quality improvement. GAP I focuses primarily on sewage interception and treatment facilities.
It also prioritized biodiversity conservation, developing an integrated river basin management approach, conducting extensive research to advance these goals, and gaining experience for implementing similar river clean-up programmes in other polluted rivers in India.
Why did the Ganga Action Plan fail?
The reason behind the failure of the Ganga Action Plan (GAP) were:
- Lack of coordination amongst state governments
- Lack of funds and staff
- Lack of public participation
The plan was previously withdrawn in the year 2000 and the Namame Gange Project came into existence in the year 2014 as a flagship program to achieve the objectives of pollution abatement and rejuvenation of the river Ganga.
Pollution of the Ganges
Pollution of the Ganges, India's largest river, poses serious risks to human health and the environment as a whole. The river, which is heavily polluted with human waste and industrial contaminants, serves approximately 40% of India's population across 11 states, serving an estimated population of 500 million people, more than any other river in the world.
- Today, the Ganges is regarded as the world's fifth-most polluted river.
- According to Raghubir Singh, an Indian photographer, no one in India spoke of the Ganges being polluted until the late 1970s.
- However, pollution had been a long-standing and continuous process in the river by the time people realized it. There were stretches of over 600 km (370 mi) in length.