NATIONAL
GANGA COUNCIL - ENVIRONMENT
News:
Rejuvenation of small
rivers under NREGS highlight of PM meet today
What's
in the news?
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The centre will showcase its initiative of
rejuvenating around 75 small rivers, mainly in UP, over the past four years
using funds under the national rural job guarantee scheme during the second
meeting of the National Ganga Council, which will be held under the
chairmanship of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Kolkata on December 30.
National
Mission for Clean Ganga:
About
the Mission:
●
The National Mission for Clean Ganga
(NMCG) is implemented by the National Council for Rejuvenation, Protection and
Management of River Ganga also known as the National Ganga Council.
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This mission was established on 12th
August 2011 under the Societies
Registration Act, 1860 as a registered society.
Administrative
structure:
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Environment
Protection Act, 1986 has provided a five-tier structure at national, state and district level to take
measures for prevention, control and abatement of environmental pollution in
river Ganga and to ensure continuous adequate flow of water.
○
National
Ganga Council under chairmanship of Hon’ble Prime
Minister of India.
○
Empowered
Task Force (ETF) on river Ganga under chairmanship of
Hon’ble Union Minister of Jal Shakti (Department of Water Resources, River
Development and Ganga Rejuvenation).
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National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG).
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State Ganga Committees and
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District Ganga Committees in every
specified district abutting river Ganga and its tributaries in the states.
Objectives:
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The mission incorporates rehabilitating and boosting the existing
STPs (Sewage Treatment Plants) and instant short-term steps to curb
pollution at exit points on the riverfront in order to check the inflow of
sewage.
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To maintain the continuity of the water flow without changing the natural season
variations.
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To restore and maintain the surface flow and groundwater.
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To regenerate and maintain the natural vegetation of the area.
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To conserve and regenerate the aquatic
biodiversity as well as the riparian biodiversity of the river Ganga basin.
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To allow participation of the public in
the process of protection, rejuvenation and management of the river.
Initiatives:
Ganga
Action Plan:
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It was the first River Action Plan that
was taken up by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change in 1985,
to improve the water quality by the interception, diversion, and treatment of
domestic sewage.
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The National
River Conservation Plan is an extension to the Ganga Action Plan. It aims
at cleaning the Ganga river under Ganga Action Plan phase-2.
Clean
Ganga Fund:
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In 2014, it was formed for cleaning up of
the Ganga, setting up of waste treatment plants, and conservation of biotic
diversity of the river.
Bhuvan-Ganga
Web App:
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It ensures involvement of the public in monitoring pollution entering into the
river Ganga.
Namami
Gange Programme:
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It is an Integrated Conservation Mission,
approved as a ‘Flagship Programme’ by the Union Government in June 2014 to
accomplish the twin objectives of effective
abatement of pollution and conservation and rejuvenation of National River
Ganga.
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Ganga was declared as the National River
of India in 2008.
National
Ganga Council:
About
the Council:
●
The National Ganga Council (NGC) was
established in October 2016 after the National Ganga River Basin Authority was
dissolved by the River Ganga (Rejuvenation, Protection, and Management)
Authorities Order, 2016.
●
The Ganga River Basin, comprising Ganga
and its tributaries, has been entrusted to the Council with overarching
responsibility for pollution control and rejuvenation.
●
This Council is in charge of preventing
pollution and revitalizing the Ganga River Basin, which includes the Ganga
River and its tributaries.
Jurisdiction:
●
Its jurisdiction includes the Ganga River
Basin states of Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Bihar, Madhya
Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal, Rajasthan, Haryana, Jharkhand, and
Delhi-NCR, as well as any additional states with large Ganga tributaries.
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It is in charge of putting the National
Mission for a Clean Ganga into action.
Composition:
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The Prime
Minister is the ex-officio Chairperson for the NGC.
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Union Minister for Water Resources, River
Development and Ganga Rejuvenation will be the ex-officio Vice-Chairperson.
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The other ex-officio members of the
council are from various ministries and CMs of the corresponding states among
other stakeholders.
Functions
of the Council:
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Implementation of the National Ganga River
Basin Authority's programmes, which are also backed by the World Bank.
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Coordination and implementation of the
government of India and Ministry of Water Resources, River Development, and
Ganga Rejuvenation initiatives.
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It also has the responsibility of creating
and modifying the regulations that govern the appropriate operation of NMCG.
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Accounts and distribution of grants,
money, loan securities, or property must be managed and maintained.
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To take all appropriate actions that are
consistent with the NMCG's goals.