Consortium of 7 IITs preparing Ganga Basin Management Plan

NEW DELHI: A consortium of seven IITs is preparing the Ganga Basin Management Plan and the first version of the project is scheduled to be submitted by it soon, Lok Sabha was informed today.

Union Minister for Water Resources and Ganga Rejuvenation Uma Bharti said an interim report along with 36 thematic reports have been submitted so far by the consortium of IITs.

Bharti said during Question Hour that a number of countries have shown interest in participating in Ganga rejuvenation.

Collaboration with Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) is under consideration in addition to the existing project with JICA assistance of Rs 496.9 crore, she said.

The Minister said the Union Budget 2014-15 has set up ' Namami Gange', an integrated Ganga conservation mission at an outlay of Rs 2,037 crore for rejuvenation of river Ganga and its tributaries.

"The mandate of Ministry of Water Resources has been enlarged to include river development and Ganga rejuvenation. The action plan for Ganga rejuvenation has been developed by convergence of different ministries through a group of secretaries and stake holders consultations through 'Ganga Manthan'," she said.

Bharti said government has also reconstituted the National Ganga River Basin Authority on September 29, 2014, incorporating the provision of a vice-chairperson with appropriate delegation and a meeting of the Authority was held on October 27.

She said specific action points have been identified for key thrust areas for rejuvenation of the river, including protection and beautification of river front, conservation of aquatic life and afforestation.

The Gujarat Sabarmati Riverfront project slideshow (below) was made in November 2013.