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Modi to hold parleys on floating platform on the Ganga
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will spend time on a floating platform on the Ganga along with three chief ministers and his 10 cabinet colleagues on December 14.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will spend time on a floating platform on the Ganga along with three chief ministers and his 10 cabinet colleagues on December 14.
Also, he will review the ongoing projects of Namami Gange in the first meeting of the National Council for Ganga, which replaced the National Ganga River Basin Authority in 2016, at CS Azad University for Agriculture and Technology here.
Earlier, he was expected to hold the review meeting of the NCG on this floating platform only but will now reach Atal Ghat at Ganga Barrage from the university and have lunch or tea on the especially made platform, which is 26 metres long with three entry points, each four metres wide. With him will be chief ministers of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Bihar, two officials engaged in the preparations said.
“The platform will be completed by tomorrow,” said the officials adding, “The prime minister will spend considerable time with the chief ministers and his cabinet colleagues. He will have lunch or tea here and hold discussions.”
The PM is scheduled for a selfie at the platform and then travel in a special boat being brought from Varanasi to the Sisamau drain, which has successfully been tapped. The drain before it was plugged and diverted was carrying 114 MLD of waste straight into the river, the officials said.
In the past, the PM has spoken about this success and it has also been a big talking point for the BJP. Again, a selfie point is being established near the drain for the prime minister.
During his stay on the platform, commandos on six motorised boats will keep a vigil. The boats have been requisitioned from the Prayagraj Development Authority (PDA) for the occasion.
In addition, the water of the Ganga has been increased, releasing the water upstream to make sure the special boat ferrying the PM has a smooth sail.
First meeting of National Council for Ganga
The prime minister will chair the first meeting of National Council for Ganga in Kanpur. Three of the five states through which the Ganga passes have confirmed participation.
While chief ministers of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Bihar will attend the meeting, West Bengal hasn’t confirmed participation. Jharkhand will skip the meeting as assembly elections are on in the state.
The city was chosen ahead of Garh Mukteshwar, Haridwar, Patna and Varanasi to host the first meeting of council that came into existence in 2016. Apart from the three chief ministers, 10 cabinet ministers will arrive a day before the meet. The PM will review ongoing projects and discuss plans for river preservation and for further cleaning it.
Union minister for Jal Shakti Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, in his interaction with the media, said, “the meeting could have been held anywhere but Kanpur was chosen as everyone sees Kanpur as one of the most polluted cities. It was time for people to see how beautiful it can look.”
