River Ganga Now Left With Just 15 Pct of Pure Water

Bangalore: The River Ganga, which is considered pious and believed to wash away sins, is on its pinnacle of pollution. The river is now left with just 15 percent of its original water, while the remaining 85 percent is sewage. What makes the condition worse is that numerous conservation efforts of crores of rupees have been futile to restore the purity of the river, reported Neha Shukla for TNN.

Uttar Pradesh receives a large share of the Ganga waters, but it is also a major contributor of pollutants to the river. UP has slacked in saving the Ganga among the four basin states, namely, UP, Uttarakhand, Bihar and West Bengal, said a recent pollution data compiled by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). Out of 594 industries whose sewage get discharged in the holy river, UP has maximum industries (495). Further, the state alone discharges 1,800 million litres per day (MLD) waste into the river daily, out of a total 4,030 MLD. CPCB data revealed that sewage and industrial effluents cause "80 percent pollution in Ganga".

States have been given funds to set up sewage treatment plants, sewer networks, sewage pumping stations, electric crematoria, community toilets and river fronts, but the situation stills seems bleak.

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