Impact of Efforts on Ganga Restoration and Conservation

Abstract

It is a well-known and recognized fact that water impacts everyone. During recent years, India’s water usage has increased and diversified, creating both increased water shortages and water quality degradation in rivers and aquifers, thereby threatening broader environmental sustainability. River healthcare gaps blight the quality of life of the average Indian who have been relegated to the periphery. Whereas governments are expected to restore and maintain the wholesomeness of the rivers ensuring environmental flows and preventing the pollution ingress into the water bodies, it is also noteworthy that the protection of water and environmental infrastructure is a social responsibility of every citizen—both individually and collectively. In this background, the paper examines the Ganga conservation and rejuvenation strategies and its impact on environment and drinking water. While government is committed for conserving and rejuvenating National River Ganga, and also addressing interrelated issues like sustainable agriculture, basin protection against floodplains disasters, river hazard management, urban river management, wastewater management and revival of water bodies for providing environmentally safe sanitation and through a well-designated scheme of afforestation in riparian zones to purify base flows and run-off draining into the river, they are also working on to enhance the ecosystem services of our rivers and water bodies that remain healthy for downstream users. In this regard, institutional network of integrated water resource management plan, policy and regulatory governance provides synergy and helps other key stakeholders, experts, investors and well-wishers. On micro-level, key points of river restoration include aspects of flows (aviralta, nirmalta) and functions of river as geologic entity and ecological entity. One may track river science, engineering and operations including afforestation and biodiversity to suggest ways of improving the overall efficacy of aquatic ecology, ecological restoration (lateral, longitudinal and vertical connectivity) and geological safeguarding (sediment transport, assessing quantity, quality and nutrient value). Critical success of recovering wastewater and restoration of drains are components of urban river management. Decentralized infrastructure can greatly enhance the speed of water treatment leading to one city-one operator through reuse of treated sewage/trade effluents. In order to have a successful water economics, it essentially requires creating enabling environment for sustained infrastructure management through water valuation, pricing and effective implementation of the urban river management strategies, and well-functioning water markets.  Ganga basin plan prepared including environmental flows allocations suggest three-pronged strategy for its implementation.