Kali Bein inspiration for Ganga cleaning: Uma Bharti

Uma Bharti

Union Minister Uma Bharti on Tuesday said the cleaning efforts at the ‘Kali Bein’, a rivulet of the river Beas, would act as a model for the ongoing ‘Ganga Rejuvenation Project’ and added that sarpanches of villages along the Ganga would be sent here for training. “I have seen all my plans for the Ganga transformation being implemented here. It is with the blessings of Guru Nanak Dev that I have come here to get the ideas for the Ganga project,” Bharti said after meeting environmentalist Baba Balbir Singh Seechewal, the brainchild of the Kali Bein cleaning efforts.

The union minister further said that she had included Sultanpur Lodhi in her itinerary only to inspect the Bein project. “I had heard much about the Bein and wanted to come earlier, but only got the opportunity today,” Bharti said. She first visited Seechewal village, where she witnessed first-hand, the utilisation of treated water.

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“We have four requirements for the cleaning of the Ganga which involves technology, finance, environmental aspects and public participation. Baba Seechewal told me that during the Bein project, public participation proved to be more vital than investment,” she said, adding that she was planning to take out a padyatra along the banks of the Ganga in October.

“I have seen how treated water is successfully being used for irrigation here. We want villages and towns on the banks of Ganga to be like Seechewal and Sultanpur Lodhi respectively,” Bharti said.