'Rs 20K cr spent on cleaning Ganga with zero results'

The Central government has wasted Rs 20,000 crore on cleaning river Ganga project with zero output, said Basavaraj Patil, Rashtriya Swabhiman Andholan National chief.

He was addressing the ‘Save Rivers Campaign’ on Saturday organised by the Grama Seva Sangh as a tribute to G D Agarwal, the environmental engineer and activist, who took part in the Clean Ganga Movement.

Basavraj Patil said: “Rs 20,000 crore has been wasted on the clean Ganga project. The river is still getting polluted with industrial waste and sewage water. Uma Bharathi, responsible to monitor the project, is silent. From four years there is no remarkable progress done in the project."

"To save rivers we should take measures that will not affect nature. The river Ganga is not just a flowing waterbody but also a source of spiritual trust for millions of Indians who, ironically, are themselves responsible for the river’s exploitation,” he added.

City-based water activist Vishwanath Srikantaiah threw light on the rivers being the final points for every human activity.

“Till 1947 India had 370 dams. But today, we have more than 6,000 dams. Can the dam building spree be reversed? Can we reverse the process of taking water for irrigation for water-guzzling crops like paddy and sugarcane? India is a predominantly groundwater dependent civilization,” Vishwanath said.