World Environment Day (June 5) has acquired a special place globally as one of the major outreach platforms for environmental issues. The focus of this year’s World Environment Day rightly nudges stakeholders to revisit and reorient strategies for sustainable management of natural resources, including water. While the central theme – Only One Earth – is a direct call for action and encapsulates the vast and ever-expanding international community, the focus of this year’s World Environment Day “Living Sustainably in Harmony with Nature” underpins the traditional approach to deal with natural resources with a strong underlying message of “respecting” them.
The Government of India has been increasingly placing water governance at the forefront of its development agenda by adopting an integrated water resources management approach that treats issues cutting across multiple jurisdictions and sectors in a holistic manner. Steps are being taken up in the direction of sanitation, pollution abatement, river rejuvenation, water-use efficiency and, most importantly, source sustainability that have a direct bearing on alleviating the effects of the climate crisis.
In 2015, a landmark policy shift was undertaken with the launch of Namami Gange Programme. For the first time in the history of independent India, a holistic and integrated approach was taken to make Ganga “Aviral” and “Nirmal” again. The Namami Gange Programme was launched with an integrated goal of development of sewage treatment infrastructure, river front development, river surface cleaning, bio-diversity protection, afforestation, public awareness, industrial effluent monitoring among others. It marked a paradigmatic shift by first acknowledging the severity of the threat to Ganga and then planning to rejuvenate the river in addition to the abatement of domestic and industrial pollution in a phased manner.
The positive results of such an approach are now showing with improvement in water quality in Ganga at several locations. In 2018, there were four polluted stretches on the main stem of the river. As per the water quality report of 2021, none of the Ganga stretches are now in priority I (BoD>30 ml) to IV (BoD>6-10) and only two stretches are in priority V (BoD>3-6). More than 20 crore people took bath in Ganga at Prayagraj during the Kumbh of 2019, which is a testimony of the improvement in quality of water.
{{/usCountry}}The positive results of such an approach are now showing with improvement in water quality in Ganga at several locations. In 2018, there were four polluted stretches on the main stem of the river. As per the water quality report of 2021, none of the Ganga stretches are now in priority I (BoD>30 ml) to IV (BoD>6-10) and only two stretches are in priority V (BoD>3-6). More than 20 crore people took bath in Ganga at Prayagraj during the Kumbh of 2019, which is a testimony of the improvement in quality of water.
{{/usCountry}}The focus of this year’s World Environment Day is directly intertwined with the objectives of Namami Gange Programme. Executed by the National Mission for Clean Ganga, Namami Gange Programme is increasingly emerging as a River Rejuvenation Model for the entire country. Sustainability is at the core of the Clean Ganga Mission. The 5R Concept of Circular Economy is at the helm of policy decisions being taken which includes Reducing Wastage, Recycling Water, Reusing Water, Rejuvenating Rivers and most importantly, Respecting Water.
During the first meeting of the National Ganga Council in Kanpur in December 2019, the Prime Minister had conceptualised “Arth Ganga” to energise the economic activity along River Ganga. Under “Arth Ganga”, which is a pivotal step in the direction of economic self-sustainability vis-à-vis Ganga Rejuvenation, six verticals are being worked upon – Zero Budget Natural Farming, Livelihood Generation Opportunities, Cultural Heritage & Tourism, Monetisation and Reuse of Sludge & Wastewater, Public Participation and Institutional Building. The central idea of “Arth Ganga” is linking people and Ganga through the bridge of economics in line with the slogan of “Banking on River Ganga”. Special emphasis is also being given to make a national policy for “Reuse of Waste Water”, which is the need of the hour. There are countries like Israel and Singapore which are doing remarkable work in recycling and reuse of wastewater. Adapting to available technologies can yield good results. There are already about 164 projects of sewage treatment plants worth ₹25,000 crore that will help to treat around 5,000 million litres per day (MLD) of wastewater.
The reuse of this treated water for non-potable purposes such as agriculture, which consumes more than 80% of India’s freshwater resources. will certainly be a boon for effective and sustainable management of freshwater resources. Under the Namami Gange Programme, the “Biodiversity Conservation and Ganga Rejuvenation” project has made significant impact at the ground level though community mobilization, especially through the self-motivated cadre of Ganga Praharis, surveys, livelihood development and mass conservation education.
Dolphin citing has also seen a considerable increase. About 20 lakh fish seeds are being ranched under National Ranching Programme-2022 being carried out by ICAR-CIFRI (Central Inland Fisheries Research Institute) during the May-June period. Faecal Sludge and Septage Management (FSSM) and Constructed Wetlands are two other areas being targeted by NMCG for decentralised treatment of wastewater, primarily for rural settings.
Clearly, a multi-thronged approach is adopted to address the sustainability challenges. Biodiversity Conservation, Spring Rejuvenation, Wetland Conservation and Rejuvenation of Traditional Water Bodies are some other target areas of the Namami Gange Programme to ensure environmental sustainability. Clearly, the programme focuses on the entire ecosystem of a river.
To take the water reforms in the country a step further, the Jal Shakti ministry was created in 2019 to give impetus to integrated management of water resources with special focus on demand as well as supply side management. The moot idea was to bring all aspects of water within a single umbrella and marked the necessary paradigm shift from a compartmentalised approach to a comprehensive approach to achieve source sustainability.
The Jal Shakti Abhiyan (JSA), an aggressive and time-bound, water conservation campaign spanning 256 districts was subsequently launched. Whereas phase I of JSA focused on asset creation and extensive communication, JSA-2 which was launched by the Prime Minister on the occasion of World Water Day on March 22, 2021, emphasised on rainwater harvesting under the tagline “Catch the Rain: Where it Falls, When it Falls”, which I happened to spearhead as the managing director of National Water Mission.
More than 47 lakh rainwater harvesting structures were constructed across all districts in the Catch the Rain campaign of 2021. This was a crucial step in sustainable management of water resources given the fact that India’s annual rainfall is about 1187.6 mm out of which only 8% is harvested and more than 50% precipitation takes place in about 15 days and less than 100 hours altogether in a year.
One of the most important impacts of rainwater harvesting is groundwater recharge. Out of total annual utilisable water resources, a major portion of 447 billion cubic metre is groundwater. The sudden shift of dependence from surface water (visible) to groundwater (invisible) has been evident. The theme for this year’s World Water Day is, also, rightly, “Making the Invisible (Groundwater) Visible.” Understanding the interconnectedness and interdependence of surface water and groundwater is important for sustainable water management. Whereas surface water recharges the aquifers underneath, the groundwater, in turn, helps maintain surface flows. For instance, the base flow of the Ganga is directly linked with the availability of groundwater in the Ganga Basin.
The initiatives taken in the water sector in the last few years reflect the understanding of the importance of water management in reducing vulnerability and building climate resilience. This understanding has guided our priorities and has informed the design of our flagship programmes including Namami Gange. The holistic and reverential approach in implementing various central programmes in the water sector will certainly go a long way in harmonising our relationship with nature.
India’s efforts also contribute in fulfilling the mandate of Sustainable Development Goal 6 that aims to “ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all”. In a nutshell, the government is committed in bringing about transformational shifts in the water sector by conserving, cleaning and caring for this precious natural resource, which directly affects the lives of each and every one of us. To conclude in the words of the Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu: “Reduce, Reuse and Recycle must be the watchwords if we have to handover a liveable planet to the future generation.”
G Asok Kumar is director-general, National Mission for Clean Ganga
The views expressed are personal