Pollution of the Ganges

The Ganga is regarded as a sacred river. It flows from the Gangotri glacier in the Himalayas to the Bay of Bengal in eastern India, where it empties/merges. It stretches for 2525 kilometres. The villagers worship this river as a deity. One of India’s key issues is Ganga pollution. The main source of pollution in the Ganga is industrial effluents. Several manufacturers, such as rubber, plastic, and leather, have sprung along the river’s bank and discharge their waste into the water. As a result, life under the ocean suffers. Fish growth has slowed significantly. According to a recent survey, the river receives roughly 1 billion gallons of unprocessed, raw sewage. Another form of Ganga pollution is the dumping of human and animal carcasses into the river. Many human remains have been found strewn on the river’s ghats and submerged in the water. The government has taken a number of steps to combat Ganga pollution. To address this dilemma, we need stretch our hands.

Ganges river pollution causes:

The disposal of human sewage and animal waste, increasing population density, and the disposal of industrial waste into the Ganges River are the main causes of water pollution in the river.

• Waste from humans

The river runs through 100 cities with populations of over 100,000 people, 97 cities with populations of 50,000 to 100,000 people, and around 48 settlements. This population is responsible for a considerable amount of the sewage water in the Ganges with a higher organic load.

• Waste from industry

Numerous tanneries, chemical plants, textile mills, distilleries, slaughterhouses, and hospitals prosper and grow along with the establishment of a large number of industrial cities on the Ganges’ bank, such as Kanpur, Allahabad, Varanasi, and Patna, and actively contribute to pollution of the Ganges by dumping untreated waste into it.

On the banks of the Pandu River, a Ganges tributary near Kanpur, one coal-fired power plant burns 600,000 tonnes of coal every year and creates 210,000 tonnes of fly ash. The ash is thrown into ponds, where it is filtered, mixed with household wastewater, and finally discharged into the Pandu River as a slurry. Toxic heavy metals like lead and copper can be found in fly ash. Before it even reaches the Ganga, the amount of copper discharged in the Pandu is a thousand times higher than in uncontaminated water. Industrial effluents account for around 12% of total effluent entering the Ganges. Despite their small number, they are a serious source of worry because they are frequently poisonous and non-biodegradable. Another source of pollution is plastic and industrial trash, such as effluent from factories along the Ganga’s banks. The river’s greatest concern is the growing scarcity of water. Water for irrigation is being depleted quicker than it can be replenished during the rainy season.

• Traditions of religion

Over 70 million people bathe in the Ganges during festival seasons to purify themselves of their past misdeeds. Some goods, such as food, rubbish, or leaves, are dumped in the Ganges, contributing to pollution. Traditional beliefs believe that being cremated on the Ganges’ banks and floating down the river will wash away a person’s sins and take them directly to salvation. Every year, an estimated forty thousand remains are burned and deposed in Varanasi alone.

Effects

• Marine life

Mercury study of several specimens collected along the basin revealed that some fish muscles tended to acquire high mercury levels. Organic mercury made up about 50–84 percent of it. A considerable positive link was discovered between mercury levels in muscle and eating habits as well as fish length.

The Ganges river dolphin is one of just a few freshwater dolphin species found worldwide. Their number is estimated to be less than 2000, making them an endangered species. The main reason for the dolphins’ population decline is hydroelectric and irrigation dams along the Ganges, which prohibit them from travelling up and down river. The Ganges softshell turtle (Nilssonia gangetica) can be found in Pakistan, northern India, Bangladesh, and southern Nepal along the Ganges, Indus, and Mahanadi river systems. This turtle prefers mud or sand beds in deep rivers, streams, huge canals, lakes, and ponds. Freshwater turtle species are endangered, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Turtles are vulnerable to heavy metal contamination, which is a major source of pollution in the Ganges, because of their long lifetime and high trophic level in the aquatic food web.

• Wildlife

Some of the dams being built throughout the Ganges River basin would submerge large sections of nearby forest. The Kotli-Bhel dam in Devprayag, for example, will sink 1200 hectares of forest, obliterating the forest and, with it, the fauna.

• Humans

In 2006 and 2007, a study of the Ganges water revealed substantial links between water-borne/enteric disease and river use for bathing, laundering, washing, eating, cleaning utensils, and brushing teeth. The water in the Ganges has been linked to dysentery, cholera, hepatitis, and acute diarrhoea, which continues to be one of India’s major causes of child mortality.

Government Effective Pollution Control Measures

Ganga Action Plan

To tackle pollution in the Ganga River, the Ganga Action Plan was developed in 1986. The primary purpose of this plan was to clean up the Ganga River by removing pollution from cities along its banks. From Rishikesh to Kolkata, the purpose was to clean up the Ganga. The central pollution control board created a five-year plan to clean up the Ganga in 1984. The central Ganga authority was founded in 1985, and a Ganga action plan was launched in 1986 to clean up the Ganga.

The Ganga Action Plan’s first phase was launched by late Rajiv Gandhi at Banaras’ Rajendra Prasad Ghat. For its implementation, the National Protection Agency was established. 256 programmes totaling 462 crores were implemented during the first phase of the Ganga Action Plan in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and West Bengal. Water quality monitoring stations have been established.

Professionals from Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited and the National Environment Engineering Research Institute tested the water quality. Despite all of the effort, the Ganga action plan failed miserably, despite having cost billions of dollars. The failure of such a massive scheme has resulted in economic pollution.

In 2001, the government initiated the second phase of the Ganga Action Plan, which is being implemented by the central pollution board, central public works department, and public works department.

Namami Ganga Programme

A flagship Namami Ganga Program was established under a separate union Water Ministry as part of the river repair endeavour. The initiative aims to incorporate the Ganga conservation mission, which is in action to clean and conserve the river while also providing socio-economic advantages to the river-dependent community through job development, improved livelihoods, and health benefits.

The Namami Ganga projects have made significant progress in the following areas:

• 63 sewerage management projects are being implemented in the states of Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and West Bengal to increase sewage treatment capacityTwelve sewage management initiatives were launched as part of these projects.

• River surface cleaning: Construction, management, and refurbishment of 182 ghats and 118 crematoria has begun on 28 riverfront development projects and 33 entry-level projects. The collecting of solid floating waste on the ghats and rivers is referred to as river surface cleaning. These wastes are piped into treatment stations following collection.

• Public Awareness: A variety of events, such as seminars, workshops, and conferences, are organised to raise public awareness and increase community transmission.

• Monitoring of Industrial Effluent: The Grossly Polluting Industries are regularly checked. In industries that follow the rules, environmental compliance is monitored. The reports are sent directly to the central pollution control board without the need of intermediaries.

Conclusion

The religious scriptures regard the Ganga as a holy river. To clean up the existing situation, authorities and citizens must take a holistic approach. The cleanliness of our rivers projects a global image. The Ganga is a part of our culture, and it is our responsibility to keep it sacred. The government should establish a more severe strategy to improve the river’s water quality. Environmental regulations should be carefully enforced, and those who break them should be held accountable.