Scientists have found a translucent eel in the Gangetic Basin in northern India, the first subterranean fish found in the region. Measuring only 1.5 inches in length, the eel has adapted to living in pitch-dark conditions. Researchers first saw the eel emerging from a tiny hole on the India-Nepal border in a social media video. The colourless fish that had a unique body, intrigued scientists from India and China. Additionally, there was no record of a fish that lived in caves, sinkholes or aquifers in the region. After months of work, they finally found the fish, which has been named Gangaichthys indonepalicus.&nbsp;Detailing the journey in a study published in the journal ZooKeys, they wrote that finding the fish proved to be a difficult task. Study co-author Akshay Khandekar from the Thackeray Wildlife Foundation said in a statement that they first had to identify borewells and wells where the fish could possibly be found. Convincing the owners to allow them to extract water was another arduous ask. When the work finally started, things unravelled.<h2>How scientists found the eel</h2>The first specimen was discovered after pumping roughly 530 gallons of water. However, it died soon after. The team pumped 132 more gallons of water in the same borewell and saw the second fish. Advanced micro-CT scanning and genetic analysis revealed that it was a new genus, with a colourless body, small eyes covered by skin and no ribs. Gangaichthys, the name given to it, means "fish of the Ganga," while indonepalicus reflects that the eel is found on the border between India and Nepal.&nbsp;Agarwal said, "This is the first stygobitic fish from the Indo-Gangetic plains and from the Gangetic basin," while discussing the river's importance in India. The river Ganga provides fresh water and food and is a source of livelihood for millions of people. It is also one of the holiest rivers in the Hindu religion. Zoological Survey of India, the National Centre for Biological Sciences/TIFR (Bengaluru) and co-author You He of the Chinese Academy of Sciences were also part of the study.

A new species of eel was found on the India-Nepal border after scientists followed up on a social media video two years ago. Finding it was hard and required pumping several gallons of water from a borewell. The fish can live in total darkness and is barely 1.5 inches long.

Scientists have found a translucent eel in the Gangetic Basin in northern India, the first subterranean fish found in the region. Measuring only 1.5 inches in length, the eel has adapted to living in pitch-dark conditions. Researchers first saw the eel emerging from a tiny hole on the India-Nepal border in a social media video. The colourless fish that had a unique body, intrigued scientists from India and China. Additionally, there was no record of a fish that lived in caves, sinkholes or aquifers in the region. After months of work, they finally found the fish, which has been named Gangaichthys indonepalicus. Detailing the journey in a study published in the journal ZooKeys, they wrote that finding the fish proved to be a difficult task. Study co-author Akshay Khandekar from the Thackeray Wildlife Foundation said in a statement that they first had to identify borewells and wells where the fish could possibly be found. Convincing the owners to allow them to extract water was another arduous ask. When the work finally started, things unravelled. How scientists found the eel The first specimen was discovered after pumping roughly 530 gallons of water. However, it died soon after. The team pumped 132 more gallons of water in the same borewell and saw the second fish. Advanced micro-CT scanning and genetic analysis revealed that it was a new genus, with a colourless body, small eyes covered by skin and no ribs. Gangaichthys, the name given to it, means "fish of the Ganga," while indonepalicus reflects that the eel is found on the border between India and Nepal. Agarwal said, "This is the first stygobitic fish from the Indo-Gangetic plains and from the Gangetic basin," while discussing the river's importance in India. The river Ganga provides fresh water and food and is a source of livelihood for millions of people. It is also one of the holiest rivers in the Hindu religion. Zoological Survey of India, the National Centre for Biological Sciences/TIFR (Bengaluru) and co-author You He of the Chinese Academy of Sciences were also part of the study.

A new species of eel was found on the India-Nepal border after scientists followed up on a social media video two years ago. Finding it was hard and required pumping several gallons of water from a borewell. The fish can live in total darkness and is barely 1.5 inches long.

Indian and Chinese scientists discover new underground blind eel on Indo-Nepal border

During a visit to a flood-affected area in Kanpur Dehat on Monday, Uttar Pradesh Cabinet Minister Sanjay Nishad sparked a row after he purportedly told local residents that they are “Ganga’s children” and thus, the “Ganga river reaches your doorstep to clean your feet, and this would take you directly to heaven.” As soon as the video surfaced on social media, netizens expressed anger against the minister.&nbsp;In the viral video, Sanjay Nishad is purportedly heard making these statements to villagers, even after they were trying to highlight issues caused by the waterlogging triggered due to the rise of the Ganga River after heavy rains.&nbsp;Meanwhile, in the video, a woman travelling with the minister and his team tries to explain the Nishad statements to an elderly woman. In response to the minister's remarks, the elderly woman said, “Stay here with us and take the blessings of Ganga yourself."

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">&quot;Mother Ganga comes to wash the feet of Ganga-putras, Ganga-putras goes straight to heaven.&quot; This was the Response by Minister Sanjay Kumar Nishad when locals tried to explain the problems people were facing in the flood-affected Bhognipur village in Kanpur Dehat. BTW, The… <a href="https://t.co/CYxpX2V5SR">pic.twitter.com/CYxpX2V5SR</a>&mdash; Mohammed Zubair (@zoo_bear) <a href="https://twitter.com/zoo_bear/status/1952623095551861034?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 5, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Later, when the minister Sanjay Nishad asked about his remarks, he told the Indian Express that the government is providing food packets and cooked food to the stranded people, “but one needs to highlight positive thoughts to them also, and that is what I did."&nbsp;He also said, “We cannot stop water and this is not a one-day or one-year problem. I was trying to give them emotional support". He further added, “It is important to instill positive thinking and hope. Otherwise, the opposition will spread negativity."<h3>IMD forecasts heavy to very heavy rainfall</h3>The India Meteorological Department (IMD) predicted heavy to very heavy rainfall is expected to continue over Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and other regions of Uttar Pradesh over the next three days. It also predicted isolated extremely heavy rainfall over northwest Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand between Tuesday and Wednesday.&nbsp;In a tragic turn of events, over 402 villages across 17 districts lie submerged amid a flood-like situation and severe waterlogging in several parts of Uttar Pradesh. Additionally, over 84,000 people are affected, and 16 have died in just 24 hours.

Residents of Kanpur Dehat district were in for a shock when state Cabinet Minister Sanjay Nishad, during a visit to the flood-affected area, purportedly told them that the Ganga River reaches their doorstep to clean their feet.

During a visit to a flood-affected area in Kanpur Dehat on Monday, Uttar Pradesh Cabinet Minister Sanjay Nishad sparked a row after he purportedly told local residents that they are “Ganga’s children” and thus, the “Ganga river reaches your doorstep to clean your feet, and this would take you directly to heaven.” As soon as the video surfaced on social media, netizens expressed anger against the minister. In the viral video, Sanjay Nishad is purportedly heard making these statements to villagers, even after they were trying to highlight issues caused by the waterlogging triggered due to the rise of the Ganga River after heavy rains. Meanwhile, in the video, a woman travelling with the minister and his team tries to explain the Nishad statements to an elderly woman. In response to the minister's remarks, the elderly woman said, “Stay here with us and take the blessings of Ganga yourself."

Residents of Kanpur Dehat district were in for a shock when state Cabinet Minister Sanjay Nishad, during a visit to the flood-affected area, purportedly told them that the Ganga River reaches their doorstep to clean their feet.

'Ganga comes to wash your feet': UP minister tells flood victims; Elderly woman asks him to 'take the blessings' — VIDEO

An 11-member Bangladeshi delegation arrived in India on Monday for a meeting regarding the Ganga Water Treaty, which is due for renewal in 2026. Watch this report for more details!

Bangladesh team in India for joint river commission meeting

Devotees take a holy dip in Ganga river on the occasion of Guru Purnima, a festival that is dedicated to teachers and mentors. Watch in for more details!

India: Devotees takes holy dip in Ganga river on the occasion of Guru Purnima

(Disclaimer: Some readers may find the story disturbing. Discretion is advised)

In Haridwar, Uttarakhand, a five-year-old boy battling blood cancer lost his life after being immersed in the icy Ganga river by his parents and relatives in a desperate bid for a miraculous cure.

The distressing episode unfolded at Har ki Pauri, where the young boy from Delhi was submerged in the freezing river during the cruel winter conditions prevailing in North India.

The family, grappling with the child's blood and bone cancer diagnosis, resorted to this desperate measure in the belief of a divine intervention.

<h2>Tragic video footage emerges</h2>

A chilling video captured the heartbreaking act, showing a woman, purportedly the boy's aunt, submerging him in the river for a brief period. Onlookers can be seen intervening&nbsp;to retrieve the lifeless child, prompting a violent reaction from the woman. Another video shows&nbsp;her sitting on the ghat, laughing, and making ominous promises of the boy's revival, invoking the Ganga's blessings.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/how-ram-lallas-outfits-were-made-with-divine-connection-with-regal-craftspersonship-683454">Also read |&nbsp;How Ram Lalla's outfits were made with 'divine connection' with regal craftspersonship</a>

Amid the turn of events, senior police officials suspect that the boy may have already succumbed to his illness before the immersion. Preliminary findings indicate that the child, undergoing treatment at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital in Delhi, might have died before reaching Haridwar. An in-depth investigation is ongoing to ascertain the circumstances surrounding this tragic incident, as reported by the Indian Express.

The family, facing the grim prognosis from doctors at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, turned to the Ganga River as their last resort.

Also watch |&nbsp;India: Delhi pollution hits sever mark

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/india-delhi-pollution-hits-sever-mark-683455/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

Haridwar Additional SP Swatantra Singh, who spoke to the Indian Express, highlighted the necessity of awaiting the postmortem report before determining appropriate legal actions. The grief-stricken family members, deeply affected by the tragedy, have been questioned, with authorities exercising caution in their approach due to the evident shock. The hired driver from Delhi also suggested the possibility of the boy's demise on the way to Haridwar.

(With inputs from agencies)

(Disclaimer: Some readers may find the story disturbing. Discretion is advised) In Haridwar, Uttarakhand, a five-year-old boy battling blood cancer lost his life after being immersed in the icy Ganga river by his parents and relatives in a desperate bid for a miraculous cure.

(Disclaimer: Some readers may find the story disturbing. Discretion is advised) In Haridwar, Uttarakhand, a five-year-old boy battling blood cancer lost his life after being immersed in the icy Ganga river by his parents and relatives in a desperate bid for a miraculous cure. The distressing episode unfolded at Har ki Pauri, where the young boy from Delhi was submerged in the freezing river during the cruel winter conditions prevailing in North India. The family, grappling with the child's blood and bone cancer diagnosis, resorted to this desperate measure in the belief of a divine intervention. Tragic video footage emerges A chilling video captured the heartbreaking act, showing a woman, purportedly the boy's aunt, submerging him in the river for a brief period. Onlookers can be seen intervening to retrieve the lifeless child, prompting a violent reaction from the woman. Another video shows her sitting on the ghat, laughing, and making ominous promises of the boy's revival, invoking the Ganga's blessings. Also read | How Ram Lalla's outfits were made with 'divine connection' with regal craftspersonship Amid the turn of events, senior police officials suspect that the boy may have already succumbed to his illness before the immersion. Preliminary findings indicate that the child, undergoing treatment at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital in Delhi, might have died before reaching Haridwar. An in-depth investigation is ongoing to ascertain the circumstances surrounding this tragic incident, as reported by the Indian Express. The family, facing the grim prognosis from doctors at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, turned to the Ganga River as their last resort. Also watch | India: Delhi pollution hits sever mark Haridwar Additional SP Swatantra Singh, who spoke to the Indian Express, highlighted the necessity of awaiting the postmortem report before determining appropriate legal actions. The grief-stricken family members, deeply affected by the tragedy, have been questioned, with authorities exercising caution in their approach due to the evident shock. The hired driver from Delhi also suggested the possibility of the boy's demise on the way to Haridwar. (With inputs from agencies)

India: 5-year-old cancer patient from Delhi submerged in Ganga in search of 'miracle cure,' dies

An Indian stuntman who entered the Ganges river Sunday tied up with steel chains and rope is missing, police said. Before entering the water, he said to AFPTV that it would be "tragic" if he didn't manage to open the ropes and chains.

Indian stuntman missing after Ganges escape goes wrong

Soon after Diwali, Chhath puja was celebrated by people from Bihar and Jharkhand. The main religious ritual involves making offerings to the rising and setting sun, &nbsp;from the banks of a river. &nbsp;Like every year, hundreds of people from these eastern states gathered on the banks of various rivers in north India, including the Hindon, a tributary of the Yamuna. The Hindon originates in the lower Himalayas and flows through Meerut, Ghaziabad, Noida and Greater Noida before joining the Yamuna just outside Delhi. The Hindon has great significance in Indian history and culture as a site of the Indus Valley Civilization, Alamgirpur, lies on its banks. In the Mahabharat, the lac palace which the wily Kauravas had lured the Pandavas into in a ploy to burn them alive, lies in a place called Varnavat (now Barnava) in Baghpat district.&nbsp;

But looking at the froth in the polluted waters of this ancient river, no one can tell its cultural significance. The Ghaziabad district administration, &nbsp;the municipal authorities of the city and the Central minister of state General VK Singh (who is an MP from Ghaziabad) had promised people that the Hindon would be cleaned up before Chhath puja. However, that turned out to be yet another empty promise by the state. Some piecemeal efforts were made to release water into the Hindon but the problem runs much deeper as hundreds of litres of sewage water and garbage from the city is dumped into it. Essentially, once again, hundreds of Chhath puja devotees stood in highly polluted waters of the Hindon. A few years ago there were pictures of a red Hindon on social media as illegal stone crushing units had dumped their waste into the river with impunity. In 2016, some villages in Baghpat district of UP had decided not to vote in the 2017 assembly elections in protest as the unimaginable pollution of the Hindon was resulting in more cancers and neurological diseases than the people had ever experienced.

The environmental activist GD Agarwal or Swami Sanand died earlier this month due to fasting in protest against the government’s inaction on cleaning up the Ganga. The river was so dear to this civil engineer- activist monk, that he spent much of his long life fighting to save the Ganga from man-made projects that would hamper the river’s uninterrupted flow in the upper reaches. In the flurry of Bollywood weddings and other meaningless WhatsApp forwards, the news of his death and the cause he stood for barely registered with the masses. However, a consortium of seven non-profit organisations which have been organizing an annual event called India Rivers Week, which ends on November 26, dedicated this year to the late activist. &nbsp;The main question being asked is, despite the decades that have passed since efforts to clean up and revive the Ganga, and the several hundred crores that have since been spent, why is the state of the Ganga worse than it ever was, and how can this issue be solved?

The pollution of the Ganges from Rishikesh right until Diamond Harbour, near Kolkata, is an issue that has got the attention of the world, even though nothing dramatic has happened to control it. But it is almost impossible to find an Indian river which is unpolluted for most of its journey. In its latest study, the Central Pollution Control Board discovered that the number of polluted rivers in India has risen from 121 to 275 over the past five years. Tamil Nadu is fighting Karnataka not only over the Cauvery’s waters but also for polluting the river with industrial effluents even before it enters Tamil Nadu. Cauvery water which was the main drinking water source for lakhs of people, is now toxic beyond safe limits.

Ramaswamy Iyer, an expert on Indian rivers, having been secretary at the Ministry of Water Resources and author of India’s first National Water Policy in 1987 attributes near death of India’s once great rivers not just to heavy pollution but also to other factors like violence to their physical components such as the river-bed, banks and floodplains. The underlying cause, he says, is a poor understanding of what constitutes a river and the deeply flawed attitudes and approaches towards rivers and the environment in general. Every river in India, except the Brahmaputra, is a female and has significance in Hindu epics and scriptures. Just as women are worshipped as devis and abused like nowhere else, rivers are worshipped as bountiful mothers (Ganga maiyya, for example) &nbsp;but havoc is wreaked on them. This election season, voters need to realise that the only religious issue that matters is the downright insult to our river goddesses happening across the country. 
 
(This article was originally published on DNA. Read the <a href="https://www.dnaindia.com/analysis/column-india-s-once-great-rivers-are-victims-of-ecological-violence-2689285">original article</a>)

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

Soon after Diwali, Chhath puja was celebrated by people from Bihar and Jharkhand. The main religious ritual involves making offerings to the rising and setting sun, from the banks of a river.

Soon after Diwali, Chhath puja was celebrated by people from Bihar and Jharkhand. The main religious ritual involves making offerings to the rising and setting sun, from the banks of a river. Like every year, hundreds of people from these eastern states gathered on the banks of various rivers in north India, including the Hindon, a tributary of the Yamuna. The Hindon originates in the lower Himalayas and flows through Meerut, Ghaziabad, Noida and Greater Noida before joining the Yamuna just outside Delhi. The Hindon has great significance in Indian history and culture as a site of the Indus Valley Civilization, Alamgirpur, lies on its banks. In the Mahabharat, the lac palace which the wily Kauravas had lured the Pandavas into in a ploy to burn them alive, lies in a place called Varnavat (now Barnava) in Baghpat district. But looking at the froth in the polluted waters of this ancient river, no one can tell its cultural significance. The Ghaziabad district administration, the municipal authorities of the city and the Central minister of state General VK Singh (who is an MP from Ghaziabad) had promised people that the Hindon would be cleaned up before Chhath puja. However, that turned out to be yet another empty promise by the state. Some piecemeal efforts were made to release water into the Hindon but the problem runs much deeper as hundreds of litres of sewage water and garbage from the city is dumped into it. Essentially, once again, hundreds of Chhath puja devotees stood in highly polluted waters of the Hindon. A few years ago there were pictures of a red Hindon on social media as illegal stone crushing units had dumped their waste into the river with impunity. In 2016, some villages in Baghpat district of UP had decided not to vote in the 2017 assembly elections in protest as the unimaginable pollution of the Hindon was resulting in more cancers and neurological diseases than the people had ever experienced. The environmental activist GD Agarwal or Swami Sanand died earlier this month due to fasting in protest against the government’s inaction on cleaning up the Ganga. The river was so dear to this civil engineer- activist monk, that he spent much of his long life fighting to save the Ganga from man-made projects that would hamper the river’s uninterrupted flow in the upper reaches. In the flurry of Bollywood weddings and other meaningless WhatsApp forwards, the news of his death and the cause he stood for barely registered with the masses. However, a consortium of seven non-profit organisations which have been organizing an annual event called India Rivers Week, which ends on November 26, dedicated this year to the late activist. The main question being asked is, despite the decades that have passed since efforts to clean up and revive the Ganga, and the several hundred crores that have since been spent, why is the state of the Ganga worse than it ever was, and how can this issue be solved? The pollution of the Ganges from Rishikesh right until Diamond Harbour, near Kolkata, is an issue that has got the attention of the world, even though nothing dramatic has happened to control it. But it is almost impossible to find an Indian river which is unpolluted for most of its journey. In its latest study, the Central Pollution Control Board discovered that the number of polluted rivers in India has risen from 121 to 275 over the past five years. Tamil Nadu is fighting Karnataka not only over the Cauvery’s waters but also for polluting the river with industrial effluents even before it enters Tamil Nadu. Cauvery water which was the main drinking water source for lakhs of people, is now toxic beyond safe limits. Ramaswamy Iyer, an expert on Indian rivers, having been secretary at the Ministry of Water Resources and author of India’s first National Water Policy in 1987 attributes near death of India’s once great rivers not just to heavy pollution but also to other factors like violence to their physical components such as the river-bed, banks and floodplains. The underlying cause, he says, is a poor understanding of what constitutes a river and the deeply flawed attitudes and approaches towards rivers and the environment in general. Every river in India, except the Brahmaputra, is a female and has significance in Hindu epics and scriptures. Just as women are worshipped as devis and abused like nowhere else, rivers are worshipped as bountiful mothers (Ganga maiyya, for example) but havoc is wreaked on them. This election season, voters need to realise that the only religious issue that matters is the downright insult to our river goddesses happening across the country. (This article was originally published on DNA. Read the original article) (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

India’s once great rivers are victims of ecological violence

Soon after eminent Ganga conservation activist G D Agarwal died after a hunger strike, our hypocrisy towards the Ganga, considered one of the holiest rivers, stands exposed once again. According to RTI data revealed in media reports, resident Indians, NRIs and PIOs contributed only a measly 2 per cent to the Clean &nbsp;Ganga Fund’s total corpus of Rs 234.98 crores.&nbsp;

The Clean Ganga Fund was started by the BJP government shortly after it assumed office in May 2014. In fact the BJP government has made cleaning the Ganga, a river that runs through several states like Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and West Bengal, both a mission and a poll plank.&nbsp;

The Clean Ganga Fund is managed by the ‘Namami Gange’, the government’s flagship programme launched in June 2014 for the ‘effective abatement of pollution, conservation and rejuvenation of National River Ganga’. The budget outlay for ‘Namami Gange’ is Rs 20,000 crore.&nbsp;

But the Clean Ganga Fund was launched by the government to tap into the supposed enthusiasm of Non-resident Indian towards the conservation of the river. The Fund projected itself as a platform through which the well-off NRIs could contribute to the cleaning of the river Ganga. Perhaps the BJP had believed that its supporters abroad would donate to this holy mission with the same zeal with which they had donated to the party’s campaign funds in the 2014 election. Several media reports had then highlighted that NRI Indians are BJP’s biggest donors. However, four years down the line, this support for the BJP has not channeled into its flagship programme of Ganga’s conservation.&nbsp;

As government’s own data shows, its plan to set up "Clean Ganga Fund (CGF)" with voluntary contributions from residents of the country and Non-Resident Indian (NRIs) / Person of Indian Origin (PIO) and others has come to nought. In fact, the usual suspects made 86 per cent of the total donations to the Clean Ganga Fund - government entities like government departments, government organiations, and public sector undertakings contributed a total of Rs 163.49 crore to the fund.&nbsp;

Another Rs 19.54 crore was donated by ‘private organisations’, which came up to 10 per cent of the total Rs 234.98 crores while NRIs, PIOs and ‘individuals’ together contributed only Rs 3.76 crore, or a paltry 2 per cent of the total fund.&nbsp;

Saving the Ganga is not government’s responsibility alone, people too need to come forward and demand corrective steps that are destroying the river and its aquatic life every single day.&nbsp;

Ganga’s basin covers more than one million sq km (390,000 sq miles) and to the more than 50 crore Indians who live in this vast region, it is life-giving, as it provides for irrigation, food, drinking water and trade.&nbsp;

The government needs to introspect why even four years later its own supporters have so little trust in the Namami Gange programme and the Clean Ganga Fund that they have contributed such a negligent amount. Because in the last four years, the BJP’s own fund has continued to receive the monetary blessings of its supporters with the party’s corpus growing to multiple times that of all other parties put together.&nbsp;

At the same time, people too need to really ask themselves if they care about the Ganga. Mere lip service and holy dips is unlikely to save the mighty river.&nbsp; 
 
(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

Soon after eminent Ganga conservation activist G D Agarwal died after a hunger strike, our hypocrisy towards the Ganga, considered one of the holiest rivers, stands exposed once again.

Soon after eminent Ganga conservation activist G D Agarwal died after a hunger strike, our hypocrisy towards the Ganga, considered one of the holiest rivers, stands exposed once again. According to RTI data revealed in media reports, resident Indians, NRIs and PIOs contributed only a measly 2 per cent to the Clean Ganga Fund’s total corpus of Rs 234.98 crores. The Clean Ganga Fund was started by the BJP government shortly after it assumed office in May 2014. In fact the BJP government has made cleaning the Ganga, a river that runs through several states like Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and West Bengal, both a mission and a poll plank. The Clean Ganga Fund is managed by the ‘Namami Gange’, the government’s flagship programme launched in June 2014 for the ‘effective abatement of pollution, conservation and rejuvenation of National River Ganga’. The budget outlay for ‘Namami Gange’ is Rs 20,000 crore. But the Clean Ganga Fund was launched by the government to tap into the supposed enthusiasm of Non-resident Indian towards the conservation of the river. The Fund projected itself as a platform through which the well-off NRIs could contribute to the cleaning of the river Ganga. Perhaps the BJP had believed that its supporters abroad would donate to this holy mission with the same zeal with which they had donated to the party’s campaign funds in the 2014 election. Several media reports had then highlighted that NRI Indians are BJP’s biggest donors. However, four years down the line, this support for the BJP has not channeled into its flagship programme of Ganga’s conservation. As government’s own data shows, its plan to set up "Clean Ganga Fund (CGF)" with voluntary contributions from residents of the country and Non-Resident Indian (NRIs) / Person of Indian Origin (PIO) and others has come to nought. In fact, the usual suspects made 86 per cent of the total donations to the Clean Ganga Fund - government entities like government departments, government organiations, and public sector undertakings contributed a total of Rs 163.49 crore to the fund. Another Rs 19.54 crore was donated by ‘private organisations’, which came up to 10 per cent of the total Rs 234.98 crores while NRIs, PIOs and ‘individuals’ together contributed only Rs 3.76 crore, or a paltry 2 per cent of the total fund. Saving the Ganga is not government’s responsibility alone, people too need to come forward and demand corrective steps that are destroying the river and its aquatic life every single day. Ganga’s basin covers more than one million sq km (390,000 sq miles) and to the more than 50 crore Indians who live in this vast region, it is life-giving, as it provides for irrigation, food, drinking water and trade. The government needs to introspect why even four years later its own supporters have so little trust in the Namami Gange programme and the Clean Ganga Fund that they have contributed such a negligent amount. Because in the last four years, the BJP’s own fund has continued to receive the monetary blessings of its supporters with the party’s corpus growing to multiple times that of all other parties put together. At the same time, people too need to really ask themselves if they care about the Ganga. Mere lip service and holy dips is unlikely to save the mighty river. (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

Do we really care about river Ganga?

India&#39;s $3 billion plan to clean the holy Ganga river is badly behind schedule with large stretches contaminated by toxic waste and sewage, forcing Prime Minister Narendra Modi to intervene, according to government officials and documents seen by Reuters.

Much of the money allocated to the project, a flagship initiative of &nbsp;Modi&#39;s Hindu nationalist government, remains unspent, say officials from the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG), a government body overseeing the project.

In one slide of a presentation to a top Modi aide in late January, NMCG officials marked almost the entire length of the river within three big circles to highlight &quot;pollution in river Ganga&quot;.

A 2018 deadline to clean the river is &quot;impossible&quot;, one NMCG official said.

&quot;If we want to meet the 2018 deadline, we should have commissioned plants to treat half the sewage already,&quot; he said, requesting anonymity because he was not authorised to speak on the record.

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<h5>A 2018 deadline to clean the river is &#39;impossible&#39;, one National Mission to Clean Ganga official said</h5>
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Over three-quarters of the sewage generated in the towns and cities of India&#39;s crowded northern plains flows untreated into the 2,525-km (1,570-mile) Ganga, according to the presentation, which has not been made public.&nbsp;

State administrations have struggled to find land for new treatment plants, while complex tendering processes have put bidders off pitching for new clean-up projects, officials said.

The Ganga is worshipped by Hindus, who make up about 80 per cent of India&#39;s 1.3 billion people.

They call it Ganga Mata, or mother Ganga, and believe a dip in the river absolves a lifetime of sins. Hindus also cremate the bodies of their loved ones on its banks and strew the ashes in the river.

Recognising that the clean-up mission is in a shambles, Modi has decided to take personal control, a senior NMCG official said.

The clean-up drive is important as Modi wants to show tangible improvement before the next election in 2019.&nbsp;

His principal secretary, Nripendra Misra, has met NMCG officials almost monthly since November, demanding to see updates on the project&#39;s progress, the NMCG official said.

Misra did not respond to messages and calls seeking comment.

Modi, voted to power in 2014, committed $3.06 billion for the clean-up in the five years to 2020 but the January presentation showed just $205 million had been spent between April 2015 and March 2017.&nbsp;

India&#39;s water resources minister, Uma Bharti, who is responsible for overseeing the clean-up and announced the 2018 deadline, did not respond to requests for comment.

&quot;I have lost hope,&quot; said Rakesh Jaiswal, head of a small Ganga-focused environmental group in the industrial city of Kanpur since 1993. &quot;There has been nothing on the ground.&quot;

Sewage pollution

India&#39;s top environmental court in February ruled &quot;not a single drop of the Ganga has been cleaned so far&quot;, accusing the government of wasting public money.

The river stretches from the Himalayas to the Bay of Bengal and is a water source for 400 million people. But it is also the destination for waste produced by 760 industrial units described by the NMCG as &quot;grossly polluting&quot;.

In addition, the NMCG presentation showed, about 4,800 million litres of sewage from 118 towns and cities flows into the Ganga every day. The functioning capacity to treat sewage is 1,017 million litres per day (MLD).

According to official data, the Modi administration has cleared the construction of plants to treat an additional 933 MLD, and the rehabilitation of existing plants with a capacity to clean an additional 1,091 MLD.

Of these, plants treating less than 160 MLD have been completed, but it is unclear if they have started operations.

The problems are striking in Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh state: toxic pollution from tanneries operating in the industrial city flows down slum-lined open sewers into the Ganga.

Of the 456 tanneries in the state that back onto the river, most of them in Kanpur, authorities have shut down just 14, according to the government presentation.

The government has also lagged on the simpler tasks of cleaning the ghats, the riverside steps where devotees assemble to bathe, and the sites on the banks where bodies are cremated.

Of 182 ghats to be modernised, work on only 50 has started. Of 118 crematoria, just 15 are currently being renovated, with work awarded for another 31, the presentation showed.

&quot;The situation has deteriorated every year, fewer people visit now and there are no prayers at this river bank,&quot; said Ram Das, a Hindu priest at a riverside temple.

Modi takes control

Modi may find it easier to launch new clean-up projects in Uttar Pradesh, through which the longest stretch of the Ganga flows, after his party wrested power from an opposition party in a state election last month.

Modi&#39;s new chief minister in the state is a Hindu priest, Yogi Adityanath, who has long championed cleaning the Ganga. Last week he inspected a riverfront development along a Ganga tributary, calling for work to be accelerated.

&quot;You will see improvements. We have asked the states to speed up progress and money is not an issue,&quot; said C V Dharma Rao, deputy director general at the NMCG in New Delhi.

On a recent evening at a ghat in Kanpur city, workers were fixing sandstone around the steps that led down to the Ganga, one of dozens of riverfront facelifts that government has launched.

But the state of the river was unchanged &ndash; black water, full of plastic and other waste thrown by devotees, flowed slowly as mosquitoes buzzed above.

(Reuters)

&nbsp;

Much of the three billion dollars allocated to the project, a flagship initiative of the Modi government, remains unspent

India's $3 billion plan to clean the holy Ganga river is badly behind schedule with large stretches contaminated by toxic waste and sewage, forcing Prime Minister Narendra Modi to intervene, according to government officials and documents seen by Reuters. Much of the money allocated to the project, a flagship initiative of Modi's Hindu nationalist government, remains unspent, say officials from the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG), a government body overseeing the project. In one slide of a presentation to a top Modi aide in late January, NMCG officials marked almost the entire length of the river within three big circles to highlight "pollution in river Ganga". A 2018 deadline to clean the river is "impossible", one NMCG official said. "If we want to meet the 2018 deadline, we should have commissioned plants to treat half the sewage already," he said, requesting anonymity because he was not authorised to speak on the record. A 2018 deadline to clean the river is 'impossible', one National Mission to Clean Ganga official said × Over three-quarters of the sewage generated in the towns and cities of India's crowded northern plains flows untreated into the 2,525-km (1,570-mile) Ganga, according to the presentation, which has not been made public. State administrations have struggled to find land for new treatment plants, while complex tendering processes have put bidders off pitching for new clean-up projects, officials said. The Ganga is worshipped by Hindus, who make up about 80 per cent of India's 1.3 billion people. They call it Ganga Mata, or mother Ganga, and believe a dip in the river absolves a lifetime of sins. Hindus also cremate the bodies of their loved ones on its banks and strew the ashes in the river. Recognising that the clean-up mission is in a shambles, Modi has decided to take personal control, a senior NMCG official said. The clean-up drive is important as Modi wants to show tangible improvement before the next election in 2019. His principal secretary, Nripendra Misra, has met NMCG officials almost monthly since November, demanding to see updates on the project's progress, the NMCG official said. Misra did not respond to messages and calls seeking comment. Modi, voted to power in 2014, committed $3.06 billion for the clean-up in the five years to 2020 but the January presentation showed just $205 million had been spent between April 2015 and March 2017. India's water resources minister, Uma Bharti, who is responsible for overseeing the clean-up and announced the 2018 deadline, did not respond to requests for comment. "I have lost hope," said Rakesh Jaiswal, head of a small Ganga-focused environmental group in the industrial city of Kanpur since 1993. "There has been nothing on the ground." Sewage pollution India's top environmental court in February ruled "not a single drop of the Ganga has been cleaned so far", accusing the government of wasting public money. The river stretches from the Himalayas to the Bay of Bengal and is a water source for 400 million people. But it is also the destination for waste produced by 760 industrial units described by the NMCG as "grossly polluting". In addition, the NMCG presentation showed, about 4,800 million litres of sewage from 118 towns and cities flows into the Ganga every day. The functioning capacity to treat sewage is 1,017 million litres per day (MLD). According to official data, the Modi administration has cleared the construction of plants to treat an additional 933 MLD, and the rehabilitation of existing plants with a capacity to clean an additional 1,091 MLD. Of these, plants treating less than 160 MLD have been completed, but it is unclear if they have started operations. The problems are striking in Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh state: toxic pollution from tanneries operating in the industrial city flows down slum-lined open sewers into the Ganga. Of the 456 tanneries in the state that back onto the river, most of them in Kanpur, authorities have shut down just 14, according to the government presentation. The government has also lagged on the simpler tasks of cleaning the ghats, the riverside steps where devotees assemble to bathe, and the sites on the banks where bodies are cremated. Of 182 ghats to be modernised, work on only 50 has started. Of 118 crematoria, just 15 are currently being renovated, with work awarded for another 31, the presentation showed. "The situation has deteriorated every year, fewer people visit now and there are no prayers at this river bank," said Ram Das, a Hindu priest at a riverside temple. Modi takes control Modi may find it easier to launch new clean-up projects in Uttar Pradesh, through which the longest stretch of the Ganga flows, after his party wrested power from an opposition party in a state election last month. Modi's new chief minister in the state is a Hindu priest, Yogi Adityanath, who has long championed cleaning the Ganga. Last week he inspected a riverfront development along a Ganga tributary, calling for work to be accelerated. "You will see improvements. We have asked the states to speed up progress and money is not an issue," said C V Dharma Rao, deputy director general at the NMCG in New Delhi. On a recent evening at a ghat in Kanpur city, workers were fixing sandstone around the steps that led down to the Ganga, one of dozens of riverfront facelifts that government has launched. But the state of the river was unchanged – black water, full of plastic and other waste thrown by devotees, flowed slowly as mosquitoes buzzed above. (Reuters)

India's Ganga clean-up in shambles, Modi intervenes

The river Ganga, or the Ganges River, was recognised today as the first living entity of India by the Uttarakhand High Court.

One of the largest rivers in India, Ganga&nbsp;is considered to be the holiest river in the country and holds a high place in its&nbsp;mythology. The Ganga is worshipped as a goddess, and for centuries&nbsp;Indians have come to it, especially in Varanasi, to be near its holy banks&nbsp;and to cremate their loved ones by it.

Recognising a river as a living entity means granting it the same legal rights as a human being. The new status means if someone pollutes river Ganga, the law will see it equal to harming a human being.

This ruling comes only four days after New Zealand&#39;s parliament granted the same rights to the 145-kilometre long Whanganui River, after calling it a living entity.&nbsp;The river became the first in the world to be legally recognised as a living entity and was granted the same rights as a human being.

The court also ruled the government to form a Ganga Administration Board for cleaning and better maintenance of the river. Earlier in the month, the court came heavily down upon the Union and Uttarakhand state government for doing &quot;nothing concrete&quot; to clean the river.

The court slammed them for wasting efforts on reviving a lost river Saraswati but not taking efforts on maintaining Ganga which if given proper attention will once again flow in its full glory.

&quot;The Ganga should be saved for the generations to come,&quot; the court added.

The Executive Committee of the National Mission for Clean Ganga had recently approved 20 projects - 13 of which are in Uttarakhand - worth Rs 1,900 crore (over $290 million)&nbsp;to be swiftly implemented in Uttarakhand, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh.

Even non-Indians have been captivated by the Ganga. Among others, the American musician from the Grateful Dead, lead guitar player&nbsp;<a href="http://ultimateclassicrock.com/jerry-garcia-ashes/" target="_blank">Jerry Garcia</a>, had half his mortal remains scattered in the Ganga.

Watch Wion&#39;s segment:&nbsp;Cleaning River Ganges

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Cleaning the Ganges, which is one of the holiest rivers in India, has been a key part of Indian prime minister Narendra Modi&#39;s clean India campaign. WION met up with a group of volunteers who are spearheading that effort. (WION)
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(WION with inputs from ANI)

The highly polluted but sacred Ganga, or Ganges River, will now have the protective rights given to humans as efforts are made to clean it

The river Ganga, or the Ganges River, was recognised today as the first living entity of India by the Uttarakhand High Court. One of the largest rivers in India, Ganga is considered to be the holiest river in the country and holds a high place in its mythology. The Ganga is worshipped as a goddess, and for centuries Indians have come to it, especially in Varanasi, to be near its holy banks and to cremate their loved ones by it. Recognising a river as a living entity means granting it the same legal rights as a human being. The new status means if someone pollutes river Ganga, the law will see it equal to harming a human being. This ruling comes only four days after New Zealand's parliament granted the same rights to the 145-kilometre long Whanganui River, after calling it a living entity. The river became the first in the world to be legally recognised as a living entity and was granted the same rights as a human being. The court also ruled the government to form a Ganga Administration Board for cleaning and better maintenance of the river. Earlier in the month, the court came heavily down upon the Union and Uttarakhand state government for doing "nothing concrete" to clean the river. The court slammed them for wasting efforts on reviving a lost river Saraswati but not taking efforts on maintaining Ganga which if given proper attention will once again flow in its full glory. "The Ganga should be saved for the generations to come," the court added. The Executive Committee of the National Mission for Clean Ganga had recently approved 20 projects - 13 of which are in Uttarakhand - worth Rs 1,900 crore (over $290 million) to be swiftly implemented in Uttarakhand, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh. Even non-Indians have been captivated by the Ganga. Among others, the American musician from the Grateful Dead, lead guitar player Jerry Garcia, had half his mortal remains scattered in the Ganga. Watch Wion's segment: Cleaning River Ganges Cleaning the Ganges, which is one of the holiest rivers in India, has been a key part of Indian prime minister Narendra Modi's clean India campaign. WION met up with a group of volunteers who are spearheading that effort. (WION) × (WION with inputs from ANI)

River Ganga recognised as India's first living entity by Uttarakhand High Court

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