Centre approves 20 projects worth Rs 1,900 crore under ‘Clean Ganga’ mission

NEW DELHI: As part of its ongoing ‘Clean Ganga’ mission, the Centre has approved 20 additional projects worth nearly Rs 1,900 crore for Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and Delhi.

Most of the projects are related to setting up new sewage treatment plants (STPs), upgradation of existing STPs and laying of sewage network in cities in the river basin.

The approved projects for Delhi include construction of new state-of-the-art STP with a capacity of 564 million litres per day (MLD) at Okhla at an estimated cost of Rs 665 crore and laying of new sewage pipelines at a cost of Rs 100 crore in Pitampura and Kondli to prevent leakages. The new plant at Okhla will eventually replace the existing STPs in the area.


These projects were approved by executive committee (EC) of the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) on March 2. The projects in the national capital also come under the purview of the NMCG approval as the central body deals with the Ganga river basin covering the river and its tributaries, including Yamuna. Thirteen of the 20 approved projects are in Uttarakhand.

They include creating new sewage treatment plants, upgrading existing STPs and laying of sewage networks in Haridwar at an estimated cost of approximately Rs 415 crore.

“This approved plan is aimed at treating sewage water generated by not only city’s 1.5 lakh local dwellers, but also by people who visit the holy place. All these projects will be fully funded by the central government,” said the Union water resources ministry in a statement.

Other projects approved for Uttarakhand include four pertaining to pollution abatement works for Alakananda to ensure clean flow of the river downstream.

Also, a major pollution abatement project for the Ganga at Rishikesh has also been approved at a cost of Rs 158 crore. The construction of a new 26 MLD STP at Lakkar Ghat with online monitoring system has been envisaged for the Rishikesh specific project.