Ganga river's cleaning and rejuvenation is prime minister Narendra Modi's pet project but despite such a strong backing, the top body to clean river Ganga, the National Ganga River Basin Authority (NGRBA), is struggling to take off as at least 17 important posts are lying vacant. The hesitation among employees to get transferred to NGRBA has left the water resources ministry gasping, which wants to start the work with full pace.
Since its formation in 2009 by UPA government as the nodal body to handle Ganga cleaning, NGRBA has been a non starter with only three meetings in the last five years, the last meeting held in April 2012. But the NDA government recently told the Supreme Court that it intends to modify and restructure NGRBA to make it more effective.
NGBRA was recently transferred from the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) to the Union Water Resources ministry led by BJP leader Uma Bharati who has been entrusted by Modi with the task of handling Ganga rejuvenation and cleaning work.
But sources told dna that of the 24 people, who were to be transferred from the environment ministry to water ministry for NGRBA work, only seven have come leaving 17 posts vacant. Of the seven who have come, one is National Mission for Clean Ganga's (NMCG) Director Rajeev Ranjan Mishra, one another senior officials and four daily wage workers.
"There is one scientist who is reluctant to come because she is retiring next year ... Now how will Ganga rejuvenation programme run when we don't have scientists and experts to work on it? In an agency like NGRBA, 17 of 24 posts are vacant and we are unsure how soon appointments, if any, will happen," a top official of the water resources ministry told dna.
The official revealed that primary reason of hesitation among officials is that they fear "change in division may affect their perks and privileges" even when their office location has not changed.
"Several efforts have been made by senior officials of our ministry to convince them but to no avail. Not having people is hampering our work and this situation needs to be addressed quickly," said the water resources ministry official while revealing that Water Resources Minister Uma Bharati has been informed about the situation to find a quick solution.
Ineffectiveness of NGRBA and apathy of UPA government had led to civil society experts like Water rights activist Rajendra Singh, Ravi Chopra and Professor Rashid Hyatt Siddiqui resigning from it.
To address the problem, the NDA government has now decided to make the Union Water Resources Minister Uma Bharati the vice chairperson of NGRBA even as PM continues to remain NGRBA's chairperson.
Recently, after being rebuked by the Supreme Court, the central government filed an affidavit envisaging a three phase plan – short-term, medium-term and long-term – to clean and rejuvenate the river. Government informed court that the process to clean Ganga will take 18 years and several programmes like Rs 51,000 crore worth project of the Union urban development ministry wherein 118 towns across India would get sewerage infrastructure including waste water treatment and solid waste management.
Other major steps for cleaning Ganga which central government has envisaged includes a scheme for making all 1649 Gram Panchayats on Ganga banks open defection free and a plan for zero liquid discharge by grossly pollution industries located in Ganga basin states.
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