Journalism of Courage
BJP MP Varun Gandhi on Tuesday raised questions on the success of ‘Namami Gange’, the NDA government’s flagship scheme, and asked why the Ganga river is polluted even after spending Rs 11,000 crore.
The Namami Gange programme, which comes under the Jal Shakti Ministry headed by Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, was launched by the government in 2014-15. The government had allocated Rs 20,000 crore for the scheme for the 2015-2020 period.
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Raising questions on the success of the scheme, Gandhi also asked who was accountable for the condition of the river.
“Ganga hamaare liye sirf nadee nahin, maa hai. Karodon deshavaasiyon ke jeevan, dharm aur astitv ka aadhaar hai Maa Ganga. Isliye Namami Gange par Rs 20,000 karod ka budget bana. (Ganga is not just a river for us, (she) is (our) mother. Mother Ganga is the basis of life, religion and existence of crores of countrymen. That is why a budget of Rs 20,000 crore was allocated for Namami Gange),” he said in a tweet.
“Rs 11,000 karod kharch ke baavajood pradooshan kyon? Ganga toh jeevandaayinee hai, phir gande paani ke kaaran machhliyon ki maut kyon? Javaabadehee kiski? (Why is it polluted despite spending Rs 11,000 crore? Ganga is a life giver, then why are fishes dying (here) because of dirty water? Whose accountability?)”
He also attached a video with his tweet.
As per a written reply by Bishweswar Tudu, Minister of State for Jal Shakti, to Lok Sabha on July 21, the government has released Rs 12,109.72 crore to the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) during 2014-15 to 2021-22, which comes under the Ministry of Jal Shakti and is responsible for implementation of the government’s ambitious Namami Gange program. Out of which, the NMCG has released Rs 11,731.56 crore to states. Out of Rs 11,731.56 crore released to the states and Union Territories, the maximum amount of Rs 3,938.24 crore has been released to Uttar Pradesh. The state is followed by Bihar (Rs 2,875.77 crore) and Delhi (1,253.86 crore.)
“Under Namami Gange Programme, 161 sewerage infrastructure projects have been taken up with a sanctioned cost of Rs.24581 crore for creation and rehabilitation of 5015 Million Litres per Day (MLD) of Sewage Treatment Plant (STP) capacity and laying of 5,134 km of sewerage network, out of which 92 projects have been completed resulting in creation and rehabilitation of 1,643 MLD of STP capacity and laying of 4,156 km sewerage network,” Tudu informed the House.
