About: Namami Gange Programme, National Ganga Council, National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) #UPSC
- Cities situated on river banks will have to incorporate river conservation plans when they prepare their Master Plans, says a policy document from the National Mission for Clean Ganga.
About: Namami Gange Programme
- ‘Namami Gange Programme’, is an Integrated Conservation Mission, approved as ‘Flagship Programme’ by the Union Government in June 2014.
- Flagship schemes of Government are those schemes which are the most important schemes and address major national concerns on health, education, environment, etc.
- As the schemes are of utmost importance, the funding of these schemes is slightly higher than other schemes.
- Flagship schemes of Government are those schemes which are the most important schemes and address major national concerns on health, education, environment, etc.
- The main pillars of the Namami Gange programme are:
- Sewerage Treatment Infrastructure & Industrial Effluent Monitoring
- Development of river-front as well as river-surface cleaning
- Bio-Diversity & Afforestation
- Public Awareness
- Sewerage Treatment Infrastructure & Industrial Effluent Monitoring
- It is implemented by the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG).
- NMCG has been given statutory powers under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, giving it bureaucratic autonomy and regulatory powers to execute the mission in coordination with the respective state governments.
- NMCG has been given statutory powers under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, giving it bureaucratic autonomy and regulatory powers to execute the mission in coordination with the respective state governments.
- Concerned Ministry: Ministry of Jal Shakti
- Corpus: Rs. 20,000 crore
About: National Ganga Council
- National Ganga Council was formed in 2016 by an executive order to replace the National Ganga River Basin Authority (NGRBA).
- This Council has the overall responsibility of preventing pollution and rejuvenating the Ganga River Basin, including the River Ganga and its tributaries.
- Prime Minister of India acts as the Chairman of the Council.
About: National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG)
- National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) is registered as a society under the Societies Registration Act, 1860.
- It is the implementation body of the National Ganga Council.
- Objectives:
- To ensure effective abatement of pollution and rejuvenation of the river Ganga by adopting a river basin approach to promote inter-sectoral co-ordination for comprehensive planning and management.
- To maintain minimum ecological flows in the river Ganga with the aim of ensuring water quality and environmentally sustainable development.
- To ensure effective abatement of pollution and rejuvenation of the river Ganga by adopting a river basin approach to promote inter-sectoral co-ordination for comprehensive planning and management.
- NMCG is supported by the State level Programme Management Groups (SPMGs) in the state of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Bihar, Jharkhand, and West Bengal.
News Summary:
- The National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG), in its policy document, has emphasised the need for river conservation plans and also noted that these “river-sensitive” plans must be practical and consider questions of encroachment and land ownership.
- The recommendations are currently for towns that are on the main stem of the river Ganga.
- There are, as per the estimate of the policy document, 97 such towns across 5 States.
- There are, as per the estimate of the policy document, 97 such towns across 5 States.
- As per the policy document, increasing green cover in the vicinity of the river by creating green buffers, removing concrete structures and employing “green infrastructure” is a key aspect of conserving and protecting river and riverine resources.
- As per the recommendations, the Master plan should create an environment for facilitating the use of state-of-the-art technologies for river management. These technologies include:
- Satellite-based monitoring of water quality
- Artificial intelligence for riverine biodiversity mapping
- Big data and citizen science for river-health monitoring
- Unmanned aerial vehicles for floodplain mapping, etc.
- Satellite-based monitoring of water quality
- Going forward, the nature and type of technologies are expected to become more sophisticated and effective. The cities must, therefore, be ready to embrace these changes seamlessly.
Environment & Ecology
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