National Missions
National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) - Namami Gange Programme is an Integrated Conservation Mission, a Flagship Programme launched by the Government of India in June 2014 to accomplish the twin objectives of effective abatement of pollution, conservation and rejuvenation of the National River Ganga. It is under the Ministry of Water Resources, River Development, and Ganga Rejuvenation and has a budget outlay of Rs. 20,000 Crores. NMCG is being supported by State level Programme Management Groups (SPMGs). The main pillars of this Mission are: Sewage Treatment Infrastructure, River Front Development, River Surface Cleaning, Industrial Effluent Monitoring, Biodiversity, Afforestation, Public Awareness and Ganga Gram. The goal is to clean Ganga and its tributaries in a comprehensive manner. Namami Gange focuses on abatement of pollution with a radical approach to ensure pure water quality and sustainable development.
Ganga Rejuvenation and Biodiversity Conservation is an integral part of this Mission’s vision. This also indicates a shift from the hard engineering solutions to an ecology based restoration activities that aims to maintain or increase ecosystem goods and services and biodiversity value while protecting downstream and coastal ecosystems by involving multiple stakeholders. It encompasses
(i) Maintaining the continuity of the flow without altering the natural season variations
(ii) Restoring and maintaining the integral relationship between the surface flow and sub-surface water (ground water)
(iii) Restoration and maintenance of the property and quality of water in time bound manner
(iv) Regenerating and maintaining the lost natural vegetation in catchment area
(v) Regeneration and conservation of the aquatic and riparian biodiversity in river Ganga basin
(vi) Keeping the bank of river Ganga and its floodplains as construction free zone to reduce pollution and maintain its natural ground water recharge functions
(vii) Making public participation as integral part of process of rejuvenation, protection and management of the river.
Its implementation has been divided into: Entry-Level Activities (for immediate visible impact), Medium-Term Activities (to be implemented within 5 years time frame) and Long-Term Activities (to be implemented within 10 years). The Entry-Level Activities comprise River surface cleaning, Improving rural sanitation and construction of toilets, Renovation, modernization, and construction of crematoria repair and Modernization and construction of ghats. The Medium-Term Activities include Arresting the municipal and industrial pollution, Hybrid Annuity based Public Private Partnership model for project implementation, Biodiversity conservation ( Gharial, Dolphin, Golden Mahaseer etc.), Afforestation (30000 Hectares from 2016 onwards), Installation of Real-Time Water Quality Monitoring Stations etc. The Long-Term Activities would involve Restoration of the ecological flow, Increased water-use efficiency and Improved efficiency of surface irrigation.