ganga+pollution

7/28/2019 Ganga+Pollution

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- A REPORT SUBMITTED BY:-- YOGESH KUMAR SAXENA, ADVOCATE High Court

- Appointed as Special Officer on Ganga pollution matter

- Chamber No.139, High Court campus, Allahabad

Civil Mics. Writ Petition No. 4003 of 2006

Cleanup efforts and the Dilemma-Ganga Pollution

Upstream pollution, downstream misery

Residents and local corporators in Kanpur were on warpath as the taps in manylocalities of this industrial town supplied black, brown, yellow stinking water. InAllahabad, the sadhu fraternity refused to take a holy dip on Mauni Amawasya enragedat governments callousness to check pollution in Ganga whose water they said was nolonger fit for religious ritual.

Two simultaneous agitations. Identical reason.

It is a story of how downstream towns suffer due to activities upstream. There are

distilleries, paper, sugar mills and chemical units in Meerut, Rampur, Gajraula IndustrialEstate, Moradabad, Bulandsahar and other towns of Western Uttar Pradesh andUttaranchal which discharge their highly contaminated, multi-coloured waste into theRam Ganga and Kali rivers, the tributaries of Ganga which meet it in the upstream ofKanpur. The industrial effluents generated by upstream towns aggravate Kanpursdrinking water problem. In Kanpur, 350-odd leather-making units add to the pollution ofthe holy river. Resultantly, further down, Allahabad gets more toxic water.

A beeline of gastro enteritis patients at Kanpur hospitals and the growing ire of thesaints at Allahabad made the authorities concerned take stock of the state of affairs.Taking strong note of the situation, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) took

samples of the Ganga water at various locations. It was found that the oxygen level inRam Ganga at Farrukhabad was 0.4 milligram per litre due to which shoals of fish weredying. The CPCB has pointed out that Ram Ganga and Kali are polluted owing to the


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untreated industrial waste discharged by paper factories, distilleries and other chemicalunits which have turned the river water black and yellow. Similarly, the Mayor ofKanpur alleges that most upstream districts have closed their treatment plants and sothe impact can be seen in the citys drinking water. Interestingly, the CPCB officials sawdeep yellow water in Ram Ganga river in Haldwani district of Uttranchal. However,instead of taking any action against the erring units, the Uttaranchal authorities havewashed their hands off the problem.

The Uttar Pradesh (UP) government has directed the district magistrates ofFarrukhabad, Meerut and Moradabad to initiate action against the sugar mills anddistilleries. Already, the cash-starved Kanpur Jal Sansthan (Water Works) is spending Rs50,000 extra everyday in purification of highly polluted raw water from Ganga. ActingGeneral Manager and Secretary of Jal Sansthan RS Tiwari said that unless the pollutantsare tapped from being released in the mainstream, the Sansthan will face a financialcrunch and may be forced to stop water purification process. Sources say that the JalSansthan has been, of late, using alum and liquid chlorine at the rate of 80 to 90 kgs inplace of 20 to 30 kgs per hour. Jal Sansthan authorities opine that the effluentsreleased in the upstream would impact the raw water source of Kanpur for many days.Even if the pollutants released upstream are tapped today, it would take at least five

days before Kanpurs tryst with contaminated water ends.

Meanwhile the protesting sants at Allahabad have noted that they would take morestringent steps to restore the glory of Ganga. Saints like Shankaracharya of Jyotirmath,Swami Swaroopanand Saraswati and Swami Nischalanand of Puri have said that if thesituation is not salvaged, their agitation would mount. The Shankaracharya of Puriwarned that a time would come when the people of this country would not even like tospit on the politicians and factory owners who have ganged up to pollute the holy river.Some sadhus have started fast-unto-death to press their demand of a pollution-freeGanga. A few threatened self-immolation and created human chains along theriverside. They scored a partial victory when acting on a Public Interest Litigation (PIL)filed by the Mahant of Kabir Ashram Guruvachan Das, the Allahabad High Courtdirected the UP government to stop pollution of Ganga caused by the leathermanufacturers in Kanpur and release water from the Narora barrage. However,Executive Secretary of Eco Friends Rakesh Jaiswal says that the present crisis of Gangapollution is a direct fallout of the release of a cocktail of industrial effluents by unitsupstream of Kanpur. But, it seems, Ganga pollution has become synonymous withtannery waste. And hence the saints anger targeting the leather-making units and thesubsequent Allahabad High Court order. He added that instead of taking action againstthe real culprits, the authorities are still groping in the dark.

The major Pollutingindustries on the Ganges River are the leatherindustries

The major pollutingindustries on the Ganges River are the leather industries, especiallynear Kanpur, which use large amounts ofchromium and other chemicals, and much ofit finds its way into the meager flow of the Ganga. Unfortunately, this is a boom timefor leather processing in India, which many view as a form of eco-environmentaldumping on the third world, and with the lax and lubricable implementation systems ofthe Uttar Pradesh government, it does not seem likely that this will go down. The worldbank report 1992, which focussed on the environmental issues, mentions the dissolved-oxygen and riverborne decomposing material at two points on the Ganga.However,

industry is not the only source of pollution. Sheer volume of waste estimated atnearly 1 billion litres per day - of mostly untreated raw sewage is a significant factor.Also, inadequate cremation procedures contributes to a large number of partially burntor unburnt corpses floating down the Ganga, in addition to livestock corpses.

The Ganga Action Plan has been set up under the Indian Government bureaucracy, andis attempting to build a number of waste treatment facilities, under Dutch and Britishsupport, and to collaborate with a number of voluntary organizations. Surprisingly, theHindu political parties in India are not very active in the efforts to clean up the Ganga,and it is not very high in the general religious agenda.

The Holi Ganges River

The Ganges River (Ganga in Indian languages; Ganges is the Latin form) (Devanagariis the major river in northern India and Bangladesh. The river has a long history of
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reverence in India and is often called the 'holy Ganga'. It originates as the Bhagirathifrom the Gangotri Glacier in the UttaranchalHimalayas and joins the Alaknanda nearDeoprayag to form the Ganga. Then on, the Ganga flows across the large plains ofNorth India (called the Gangetic Plains) and empties into the Bay of Bengal afterdividing up into many distributaries. One of them is the Hoogli River near Kolkata,another major distributary being the Padma River that enters Bangladesh and mergeswithJamuna River, a branch of the Brahmaputra River.

Ganges river delta, Bangladesh and India

The total length of the river is about 2,510 km (1,557 mi). One of the densest humanpopulation belts on earth is built around the Ganga.

The region encompassing the delta near the Bay of Bengal coast is known as TheSundarbans (Beautiful Forests) a region of thick mangrove forests, and one of themajor habitats of the Royal Bengal tiger.

The Ganges Basin is incredibly fertile and, at present, about one in every 12 people inthe world (8.5%) live in its catchment area. However, due to this incredible

concentration of population, pollution and destruction of habitats is increasing at analarming rate in the region.

TheYamuna River a major river in its own right, and nearly as sacred is a tributaryof the Ganga, and their confluence is near what is the site of the traditional holy Hinducity ofPrayag, now known as Allahabad.

Two species ofdolphin can be found in the Ganges, the Ganges River Dolphin and theIrrawaddy Dolphin. The Ganges is also notable in that it contains a rare species offreshwater shark, Glyphis gangeticus about which little is known.

The Ganga in Hinduism

"Descent of the Ganga", Relief at Mahabalipuram

The Ganga is personified in Hinduism as a goddess: Maa Ganga (Mother Ganga). Hindulegend makes her the foster-mother ofKarttikeya, who was actually a son ofShiva andParvati

Several places sacred to Hindus lie along the banks of the river Ganga, includingHaridwar and Varanasi. It is believed that taking a dip in the river will wash away one'ssins, and that having one's ashes disposed of in the Ganga after death may improveone's next life or even allow Moksha to be attained sooner. Devout Hindus makepilgrimages to bathe in the Ganga and to meditate on its banks.

According to mythological legend, Brahma collected the sweat of Vishnu's feet andcreated Ganga. Being touched by two members of the Trimurti, Ganga became veryholy .

Prayer on the bank of Ganga at Haridwar

Hindus have long believed that the water of Ganga has a special purity. Studiesconducted in 1983 on water samples taken from the right bank of the Ganga at Patna

confirm that escheria coliform (E.Coli.), fecal streptococci and vibrio choleraeorganisms die two to three times faster in Ganga than in water taken from the riversSon and Gandak and from dug wells and tube wells in the same area. However, despitethe natural resilience of the Ganga, the alarmingly high volume of pollution poses anever increasing threat to the health and life of the river.

Early morning on the Ganges

Several years later, a king named Sagara magically acquired sixty thousand sons. Oneday, King Sagara performed a ritual ofworship for the good of the kingdom. One of theintegral parts of the ritual was a horse, which was stolen by the jealous Indra. Sagara

sent all his sons all over the earth to search for the horse. They found it in the nether-world (or Underworld) next to a penitent sage Kapila. Believing that the sage had stolenthe horse, they hurled insults at him and caused his penance to be disturbed. The sage
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opened his eyes for the first time in several years, and looked at the sons of Sagara.With this glance, all sixty thousand were burnt to death. The souls of the sons of Sagarawandered as ghosts since their final rites had not been performed. When Bhagiratha,one of the descendants of Sagara, son of Dilip, learnt of this fate, he vowed to bringGanga down to Earth so that her waters could cleanse their souls and release them toheaven.

The largest religious gathering on Earth. Around 70 million Hindus from around the

world participated in Kumbh Mela at one of the Hindu Holy city Prayaga (also known asAllahabad) on the banks of river Ganga.

Bhagiratha prayed to Brahma that Ganga come down to Earth. Brahma agreed, and heordered Ganga to go down to the Earth and then on to the nether regions so that thesouls of Bhagiratha's ancestors would be able to go to heaven. The vain Ganga felt thatthis was insulting and decided to sweep the whole earth away as she fell from theheavens. Alarmed, Bhagiratha prayed to Shiva that he break up Ganga's descent.

Ganga arrogantly fell on Shiva's head. But Shiva calmly trapped her in his hair and lether out in small streams. The touch of Shiva further sanctified Ganga. As Ganga

travelled to the nether-worlds, she created a different stream to remain on Earth tohelp purify unfortunate souls there.

Because of Bhagiratha's efforts Ganga descended on to earth and hence the river isalso known as Bhagirathi, and the term "Bhagirath prayatna" is used to describe valiantefforts or difficult achievements.

Another name that Ganga is known by is Jahnavi. Story has it that once Ganga camedown to earth, on her way to Bhagiratha, her rushing waters created turbulence anddestroyed the fields and the sadhana of a sage called Jahnu. He was angered by thisand drank up all of Ganga's waters. Upon this, the Gods prayed to Jahnu to releaseGanga so that she could proceed on her mission. Pleased with their prayers, Jahnureleased Ganga (her waters) from his ears. Hence the name "Jahnavi" (daughter ofJahnu) for Ganga.

It is sometime believed that the river will finally dry up at the end of Kali Yug (the era ofdarkness, the current era) just as with the vedic Saraswati river, and this era will end.Next in (cyclic) order will be the SatYug or the era of Truth.

Iconography of Ganga the Goddess

In the cannons of Indian art, Ganga is visualized as voluptuous and beautiful, carryingan overflowing pot in her hand. The vessel conveys the idea of abundant life andfertility, which nourishes and sustains the universe.

The second distinguishing aspect of Ganga's iconography is her animal mount, which isoften shown serving as a pedestal for her. This is the makara, a hybrid creature havingthe body of a crocodile and the tail of a fish. The makara in Hindu thought correspondsto the star sign ofCapricorn in western astrology.

The makara is also the vehicle of the Vedic god of waters, Varuna, thus establishingfirmly Goddess Ganga's Vedic roots.

Recent Pollution

The Ganges collects large amounts of human pollutants as it flows through highlypopulous areas. These populous areas, and other people down stream, are thenexposed to these potentially hazardous accumulations. While proposals have beenmade for remediating this condition so far no great progress has been achieved. TheGanga remains an economically important waterway and polluting it remains

economically advantageous Clean Ganga Campaign directors

In 1985 the Indian government under Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi developed the Ganga

Action Plan, a program designed to combat pollution of the Ganga. An ambitious five-year, $300 million dollar project, GAP attempted to solve the problem by installingdozens of sewage treatment facilities along the Ganga as well as forcing corporations
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to police themselves with the threat of fines and litigation. For the first time researchteams were assigned the task of monitoring coliform counts and BOD levels.

After the first phase of GAP was complete, however, there was little evidence of itsefficacy in cleaning up the river. Recent evidence suggests that, while slowed, theamount of sewage and pollutants has doubled since the institution of GAP policies.Various explanations abound as does regional speculation and apportionment of theblame for this failure. During the course of its existence leadership and staff of GAP

have come and gone, often unfamiliar with the work done by previous groups. In manycases there was never follow-up funding given to maintain the treatment plants. As aresult small problems often led to total inoperation of the plants. The bulk of thetreatment facilities run on electricity, a dangerous dependency on a fickle powersource; in many Indian cities it is not unusual for the power to go out several times aday. During monsoon seasons many of the plants become overwhelmed andmunicipalities are forced to shut them down.

Citizens of northern India are quick to offer their opinion of why GAP has been doomedto failure. Mismanagement, corruption, and incompetence all rank high on the lists ofeditorials issued by the many communities that live along the river. Kelly Alley, an

Anthropologist writing for Ethnologywho conducted her field work in Banaras, found apopular exclamation of the confusion and frustration felt by the people of the city overGanga issues. Sab kha gaye, or it was all eaten, meaning government officialspocketed most of the funding, was how many explained the dismal failure (Alley 1994:136).

Tensions have continued to mount as municipalities blame the individual for their useof soap, the disposal of dead animals, and unlawful defecation in and around the river.Challenges of hypocrisy fly, though, as scientists understand that it is the factories andgovernment institutions that are responsible for the greater portion. In Varanasi, likemany other cities along the Ganges, the absurdity of these government accusationscan be seen as bathers spill detergents and soaps into the river, leaving a thin coveringthat masks the sewage main underneath discharging 250 million liters of raw sewagedaily (Alley 1994: 135).

In many circles a consensus has been reached. Any attempts to install waste removalsystems or conservation programs throughout the last 200 years, locals agree, havefailed to involve the immediate community they would effect. It is this critical lack ofdialogue and education that has left the majority with a feeling of disempowerment anda resentment, even an opposition to these cleanup programs. Those with a trueinvestment in the river, those who are intimately connected to the Ganga were neverincluded in the planning. Government groups have adopted independent agency to dowith the Ganga as they see fit, ignoring the population to whom the Ganga belongs, towhom the Ganga takes on greater significance than as just a water source and carrierof pollutants. Alley explains, "there is a conflict of cultural logic between the scientificview of pollution and the traditional belief in the Gangas purity." (Alley 1994: 127).

The idea of pollution itself challenges the traditional understanding of the Ganga.Pollution has been the secular term used by government agencies when describing thestate of the Ganga. Pollution is problematic in that it suggests to many a state ofinherent impurity rather than the result of human action. A more popular term hasbeen gandagi, which encompasses only the waste products themselves. Indians areloath to use the words of scientists and policy-makers which suggest that gandagi canexert its influence over Ganga. Many observe that "the Ganga can never be impure"and that the power of Ganga is that it can overcome gandagi, "carrying it away into theocean" (Alley 1994: 130).

Pollution suggests an abstraction that removes the human element of this process(Peavey 1995: 48). But blaming the river, or employing rhetoric that could suggestblaming the river is not culturally viable in the quest to clean up Ganga. Ganga is somuch more than simply a river. Diana Eck, a religious scholar, cites the Ganga as thearchetype of sacred waters. She writes, "The River Ganga is not confined to the courseshe takes across the plains of North India but participates in that spatial transposition

which is so typical of Hindu sacred topography, pervading the sacred waters of allIndias great rivers." (Eck 1982: 167). The ritual and traditional understanding andusage of the Ganga is always differentiated in modern discussion from the potableneeds of a citys water system. Gangas foremost function, it must be remembered, is


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to provide absolution, not to quench thirst. Gangas purpose, in the traditionaldiscourse, cannot be altered by humankind.

Pollution control in India in the modern age is frequently seen as an imposition againstHinduism. Germ theory, fecal matter counts, the notion of ecological disaster, all theseideas are patently western. The first attempts by the British to bring sewage systems toIndia in the late 19th century were admittedly executed with the intention of ushering inscientific rationalism for the betterment of native life and their "savage conditions"

(Alley 1994: 132). Ever since then sanitation programs have been divorced from themajority body, importing European and American specialists to diagnose and addressthe problem without educating or organizing the public to stand with these programs.In the eyes of many the Indian government has turned to secular solutions to what theyperceive to be religious deficiency, the inability to recognize waste and deal with it inthe context of the all-purifying Ganga. As a result opposition among the laity hasfomented.

Through all of the activity of the last fifteen years surrounding government policy andthe Ganga the public has remained divorced from the proceedings. Individuals, whileexcluded from a democratic process, or an educational scheme, have been

scapegoated by various programs. In 1987 the Environment Minister created a policeforce in Varanasi to prohibit defecation along the banks of the river, the spreading ofdebris and garbage, the dumping of animal carcasses in the river, and blocking the flowof river. In this way the local authorities were pitted against those who ideally would beintegrated into these programs. This antipathy persists today. Only a year agooutraged residents cornered a city water engineer and forced him to stand for severalhours in a pool of sewage to impress upon him the exigency of the situation (Stille1998: 63).

"With a clear understanding that their strategies would be contentiousamong residents and government officials, the Clean Ganga Campaigndirectors aimed to educate Benaras residents about the problems of riverpollution in the idiom of sacred purity. They framed their instruction byemphasizing a concern for Ganga's eternal power and purity. But whenproposing remedies for cleaning Ganga, they turned to secular solutions.For example, when initially developing programs to convey problems ofsewage drainage and public waste to the public, the directors soughtassistance from American colleagues who eventually established the"Friends of the Ganges" in the USA." (Alley 1994: 134)

"The mahant is also convinced that science and religion have to mesh if theGanges is to be saved. The Western approach, based on fear of a possibleecological disaster, will not work, he said. If you go to people who have aliving relationship with Ganga and you say, Ganga is polluted, the water isdirty, they will say Stop saying that. Ganga is not polluted. You areabusing the river. But if you say Ganga is our mother. Come and see whatis being thrown on the body of your mothersewage and filth. Should wetolerate sewage being smeared on the body of our mother? and you willget a very different reaction, and you can harness that energy." (Saville1998: 67)

This energy, the product of acknowledging Ganga as both Goddess and long-standingwaste-removal system, is the last opportunity for effecting change on the river. Indiasrapid growth rate indicates that it will soon be the most populous country in the world.Efforts to clean up the Ganga could, if successful, serve as a model of cultural andreligious preservation as India strains under the weight of rapid development. GangaMa will continue to purify all. In return, hope many residents of Hardwar, Rishikesh,Allabad, and Varinasi, she can be accorded the dignity and respect due a livinggoddess. Surely a goddess that serves Indians without rest can expect such reciprocity.

The master plan for the cities has been prepared by Japan International CooperationAgency, a Japanese government institution, he informed Vidhan Sabha, replying to a

question by BJP member Shyam Deo Roy Chowdhary on Monday.

The 'Sewerage Master Plan' has been prepared as per population estimates in the fourcities in 2030 and projections vis-a-vis capacity of main sewer lines, he said.


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The organisation also prepared a feasibility report and identified works to be taken upon a priority basis, he added.

Chowdhary said the cost of the works to be undertaken, as per preliminary estimates,was Rs 10,234 crore. The Centre would bear 85 per cent cost of the project in the formof grant while the State government would bear the rest, he said adding Japan's BankFor International Cooperation would provide loan for the purpose.

The principal sources of pollution in the Ganga are domestic and industrial wastes.Conservative estimates put the effluents flowing into Ganga at approximately 1.7billion litres each day out of which 1.4 billion litres is untreated.

The Ganga basin is home to over 300 million people, out of which 20 million live indensely populated cities directly along it banks. Most of the urban centres lack propersewage treatment facilities. 88% of the pollution originates in 27 cities located alongthe banks. While industrial pollution accounts for only about a quarter of the wholeproblem, it is by no means insignificant since most of it is concentrated in specific

areas and the effluents are more hazardous. The state of Uttar Pradesh alone isresponsible for over 50% of the pollutants entering the river along its entire journey tothe sea.

Domestic and industrial pollution, combined with deforestation, use of pesticides andfertilisers and other factors, have rendered the water of Ganga unfit for drinking orbathing.

Upstream from Varanasi, one of the major pigrimage sites along the river, the water iscomparatively pure, having a low Bio-Oxygen Demand (B.O.D.) and Fecal ColiformCount. However, once the river enters the city these levels rise alarmingly.Measurements taken at the city's various bathing ghats during a few years ago showthat the average B.O.D of the water rises by over 1300 percent. The average FecalColiform Count at the ghats is over 6000 times what it is before the river enters thecity.

The Ganga Action Plan launched in 1986 by the Government of India has not achievedany success despite expenditure of over five billion rupees. Even though thegovernment claims that the schemes under the Ganga Action Plan have beensuccessful, actual measurements and scientific data tell a different story. The failure ofthe GAP is evident but corrective action is lacking..

Allahabad is a city in the Indian state ofUttar Pradesh.

The name, meaning "City ofAllah", was given to the city by the Mughal Emperor Akbarin 1583. In Indian alphabets it is spelt "Ilhbd": "ilh" is Arabic for "god", and "-bd"is Persian for "place of".

The modern city is on the site of the ancient holy city of Prayga (Sanskrit - "Place ofSacrifice" and is the spot where Brahma offered his first sacrifice after creating theworld). It is one of four sites of the Kumbha Mela, the others being Haridwar, Ujjain andNasik. It has a position of importance in the Hindu religion and mythology since it is

situated at the confluence of the rivers Ganga,Yamuna, and the mythical Saraswati.

Because solar events in Allahabad occur exactly 5 hours and 30 minutes ahead ofGreenwich, the city is the reference point for Indian Standard Time, maintained by thecity's observatory.

The city has Motilal Nehru National Institute of technology [1] one of the excellenttechnical institutes in India.

History

When the Aryans first settled into what they termed the Aryavarta, or Madhydesha,their territory extended till Prayag. The Vatsa (a branch of the early Indo-Aryans) wererulers of Hastinapur, and they established the town of Kaushambi near present dayAllahabad.
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In the times of the Ramayana, the site of Allahabad was made up of a few Rishi's hutsat the confluence of the three rivers. Lord Rama, the main protagonist in theRamayana, spent some time here, at the Ashram of Sage Bharadwaj, beforeproceeding to nearby Chitrakoot.

The city was known earlier as Prayaga - a name that is still commonly used. Akbarrealized the strategic importance of the city, built a magnificent fort on the banks ofthe holy Sangam and re-christened it as Illahabad in 1575.

In 1801 Nawab of Awadh ceded it to East India Company. In 1857, the city was acrucible of activity in the Indian Mutiny. The company officially handed over India toBritish Government in 1858 at Minto Park. Under the British rule, Allahabad was thecapital of the United Provinces till the 1920s. It was a well-known centre of education(dating from the time of the Buddha), and in the first few decades of the 20th century,the Allahabad University had earned for itself the epithet of 'Oxford of the East'. It isalso a major literary centre for Hindi, with many literateurs being connected to it insome way or the other. It holds the world record for the world's first letter delivered byairmail (from Allahabad to Naini, just a few km. across the river Yamuna) (1911).

Allahabad was the birthplace ofJawaharlal Nehru, and the Nehru family estate, calledthe Anand Bhavan, is now a museum. It was also the birthplace of his daughter IndiraGandhi, and the home of Lal Bahadur Shastri, both later Prime Ministers of India. Inaddition Vishwanath Pratap Singh and Chandra Shekhar were also associated withAllahabad. Thus Allahabad has the distinction of being the home of several PrimeMinisters in India's post-independence history.

During the movement for independence, Allahabad was at the forefront of all politicalactivities. Alfred Park in Allahabad was the site where, in 1931, the revolutionaryChandrashekhar Azad killed himself when surrounded by the British Police. AnandBhavan, and an adjacent Nehru family home, Swaraj Bhavan, were the center of thepolitical activities of the Indian National Congress, and a magnet for revolutionaries andstudent activists.

The first seeds of the idea of Pakistan were also sown in Allahabad. In 1930, AllamaMuhammad Iqbal (1877-1938) in his presidential address to the All-India Muslim Leagueproposed a separate Muslim state for the Muslim majority regions of India.

Geography

It is located in the southern part of the state, at 2526 N. lat. and 8150 E, and standsat the confluence of the Ganga (Ganges), andYamuna rivers.

Allahabad falls in the Southern part of the Awadh region. To its west and south is theBundelkhand region, while to its east is the Baghelkhand region.

Allahabad stands at a strategic point both geographically and culturally. A part of theGanga-Yamuna Doaba region, it is the last point of the Yamuna river and is the lastfrontier of the 'west' Indian culture. The Indian GMT longitude that is associated withJabalpur, also passes through Allahabad, which is 343 km north ofJabalpur on the samelongitude.

Demography

Allahabad City has a population of 1,050,000 as per the 2001 census with about580,000 males and 470,000 females. It lists as the 32nd most populous city in India.Allahabad has an area of about 65 km and is 98 m above sea level. Languages spokenin and around Allahabad include Hindi, English, Urdu and some Bengali and Punjabi.The dialect of Hindi spoken in Allahabad is Awadhi. All major religions are practiced inAllahabad.

Climate

Allahabad experiences all four seasons. The summer season is from April to June withthe maximum temperatures ranging between 40 to 45 C. Monsoon begins in early Julyand lasts till September. The winter season falls in the months of December, Januaryand February. Temperatures in the cold weather could drop to freezing with maximum
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at almost 12 to 14 C. Allahabad also witnesses severe fog in January resulting inmassive traffic and travel delays. It does not snow in Allahabad.

Lowest temperature recorded 2 C; highest, 48 C. [2]

Kumbha and Magh Mela

The largest religious gathering on Earth. Around 70 million people from around theworld participated in Kumbh Mela at one of the Hindu Holy city Prayaga (also known asAllahabad) (India).

The word 'Mela' is fair in Hindi. Except the years of the Kumbha Mela and the ArdhaKumbha Mela (Ardha is half in Hindi, hence the Ardha Kumbha Mela is held every 6thyear), the Magh Mela takes place every year in the month of Magh (Jan - Feb) of theHindu calendar. Kumbh Mela (the Urn Festival) occurs four times every twelve yearsand rotates between four locations: Prayag (Allahabad), Haridwar, Ujjain and Nashik.

In Allahabad, these fairs take place at the Sangam (confluence) of theYamuna and theGanges River which is holy in Hinduism. In the Kumbha Mela of 2001, which was calledthe Maha (great) Kumbha Mela because of an alignment of the Sun, Moon, andJupiterthat occurred only every 144 years, almost 75 million people visited the banks of theriver to take part in the festivals. During the Melas, an entire township is built on theriver's banks, with functioning hospitals, fire stations, police stations, restaurants andother facilities.

Literary Past

Perhaps Allahabad is most famous for the literary geniuses it has produced. Most of thefamous writers in Hindi literature had a connection with the city. Notable amongst themwere Mahadevi Varma, Sumitranandan Pant, Suryakant Tripathi 'Nirala', Upendra Nath'Ashk' and Harivansh Rai Bachchan. Another noteworthy poet was Raghupati Sahaywho was more famous by the name of Firaq Gorakhpuri. Firaq was an outstandingliterary critic and one of major Urdu poets of the last century. Both Firaq and Bachchanwere professors of English at Allahabad University. Firaq Gorakhpuri and MahadeviVarma were awarded the Jnanpith Award, the highest literary honour conferred in theRepublic of India in 1969 an 1982 respectively.

The famous english author and Nobel Laureate (1907) Rudyard Kipling also spent timeat Allahabad working for ThePioneeras an assistant editor and overseas correspondent.

Sports and Recreation

Allahabad is well known for its sporting activities in the fields of Cricket, Badminton,Tennis and Gymnastics. There are several sports complexes that can be used by bothamateurs and professionals. These include the Madan Mohan Malaviya Cricket stadium,Mayo Hall Sports Complex and the Boys' High School & College Gymnasium. There areseveral swimming facilities throughout the city as well.

Allahabad has a prominent place in Indian Gymnastics. It is the leading team in SAARCand Asian countries.

Passenger transportation

Air: Allahabad is served by the Bamrauli airport (airport code IXD) and is linked to Delhiand Kolkata by Air Sahara. Other airports in the vicinity are Varanasi (147 km) andLucknow (210 km).

Road: National Highway 2 runs through the center of the city. Allahabad is located inbetween Delhi and Kolkata on this highway. Another highway that links Allahabad isNational Highway 27 that is 93 km long and starts at Allahabad and ends at Mangawanin Madhya Pradesh. There are other highways that link Allahabad to all parts of thecountry. Allahabad also has three bus stations catering to different routes - at Zero

Road, Leader Road and Civil Lines.

Tourist taxis, auto-rickshaws and tempos are available for local transport. There is alsoa local bus service that connects various parts of the city. But the cheapest and most
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efficient method of local transport is the cycle rickshaw. Rates are not fixed and oneneeds to bargain.

Train: Served by Indian Railway.Allahabad is the headquarters of the North CentralRailways Zone, and is well connected by trains with all major cities, namely, Kolkata,Delhi, Mumbai, Jaipur, Lucknow and Hyderabad. Allahabad has four railway stations -Prayag Station, City Station (Rambagh), Daraganj Station and Allahabad Junction (theMain station)

CPCB steps in to check Ganga pollution

NEW DELHI FEB. 21. The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) has voiced its concernover pollution in the Ganga. Taking a cue from the `sadhus' who recently refused totake the traditional holy dip at the Sangam (the confluence of the Ganga, the Jamunaand the mythical Saraswati), the CPCB has now directed the Pollution Control Boards ofUttar Pradesh and Uttaranchal to monitor pollution levels in the Ganga and itstributaries on a weekly basis.

In the directive, signed by the CPCB Chairman, the State boards have been asked to file

their first compliance report within a fortnight. They have also been asked to ensurethat effluents from industries located along the Ganga and its tributaries were notdischarged into it during the non-monsoon months. In the rainy season, the effluentscould be discharged but only if they complied with the prescribed norms.

The directive was sent after the CPCB and the two State boards conducted a detailedsurvey and monitored the quality of water along the two major tributaries of the Ganga Kali and Ramganga between February 2 and 5, which showed that municipalitiesand industries continued to discharge untreated or partially-treated effluents andsewage.

Another joint survey and monitoring conducted in an around Kanpur on January 28 and29 yielded a similar result. A public interest litigation petition has been filed in theAllahabad High Court seeking a mandamus directing the authorities to take urgentsteps to check pollution.

The District Magistrates of Allahabad and Kanpur, the Uttar Pradesh PCB, the StateChief Secretary and the Secretary to the Urban Development Department have beennamed in the petition filed by Guru Bachchan Das, mahant of Kabir Ashram atAllahabad.

Religious leaders have alleged that only 50 per cent of the industries had adopted thenecessary measures required under the Ganga Action Plan, initiated 15 years ago.

People performing Hindu ceremony in Varanasi.

The major pollutingindustries on the Ganges River are the leather industries, especiallynear Kanpur, which use large amounts ofchromium and other chemicals, and much ofit finds its way into the meager flow of the Ganga. Unfortunately, this is a boom timefor leather processing in India, which many view as a form of eco-environmentaldumping on the third world, and with the lax and lubricable implementation systems ofthe Uttar Pradesh government, it does not seem likely that this will go down. The world

bank report 1992, which focussed on the environmental issues, mentions the dissolved-oxygen and riverborne decomposing material at two points on the Ganga.

However, industry is not the only source of pollution. Sheer volume of waste estimated at nearly 1 billion litres per day - of mostly untreated raw sewage is asignificant factor. Also, inadequate cremation procedures contributes to a large numberof partially burnt or unburnt corpses floating down the Ganga, in addition to livestockcorpses.

The Ganga Action Plan has been set up under the Indian Government bureaucracy, andis attempting to build a number of waste treatment facilities, under Dutch and British

support, and to collaborate with a number of voluntary organizations. Surprisingly, theHindu political parties in India are not very active in the efforts to clean up the Ganga,and it is not very high in the general religious agenda. India's government has alreadyspent over $33 million to address the overwhelming sewage problem. However, things
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cycle_rickshawhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_Railwayhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kolkatahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delhihttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mumbaihttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaipurhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucknowhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyderabadhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Daraganj&action=edithttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Varanasihttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pollutionhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Industrieshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leatherhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kanpurhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chromiumhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chemicalhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indiahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uttar_Pradeshhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sewagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Livestockhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Netherlandshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Kingdomhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hinduhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cycle_rickshawhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_Railwayhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kolkatahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delhihttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mumbaihttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaipurhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucknowhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyderabadhttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Daraganj&action=edithttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Varanasihttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pollutionhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Industrieshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leatherhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kanpurhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chromiumhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chemicalhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indiahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uttar_Pradeshhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sewagehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Livestockhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Netherlandshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Kingdomhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hindu


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are looking better at the beginning of 2006, as satellite images show increased waterclarity in the river.

The Ganges collects large amounts of human [[pollution|pollutants]] as it flows throughhighly populous areas. These populous areas, and other people down stream, are thenexposed to these potentially hazardous accumulations. While proposals have beenmade for remediating this condition so far no great progress has been achieved. TheGanga remains an economically important waterway and polluting it remains

economically advantageous[[Image:Ganges_ceremony.jpg|thumb|230px|right|Peopleperforming Hindu ceremony in [[Varanasi]].]]

The major [[pollution|polluting]] [[industries]] on the [[Ganges River]] are the[[leather]] industries, especially near [[Kanpur]], which use large amounts of[[chromium]] and other [[chemical]]s, and much of it finds its way into the meager flowof the Ganga. Unfortunately, this is a boom time for leather processing in [[India]],which many view as a form of eco-environmental dumping on the third world, and withthe lax and lubricable implementation systems of the [[Uttar Pradesh]] government, itdoes not seem likely that this will go down. The world bank report 1992, whichfocussed on the environmental issues, mentions the dissolved-oxygen and riverborne

decomposing material at two points on the Ganga.

However, industry is not the only source of pollution. Sheer volume of waste estimated at nearly 1 billion litres per day - of mostly untreated raw [[sewage]] is a significant factor. Also, inadequate cremation procedures contributes to alarge number of partially burnt or unburnt corpses floating down the Ganga, in additionto [[livestock]] corpses.

The Ganga Action Plan has been set up under the Indian Government bureaucracy, andis attempting to build a number of waste treatment facilities, under [[Netherlands|Dutch]] and [[United Kingdom|British]] support, and to collaborate with a number ofvoluntary organizations. Surprisingly, the [[Hindu]] political parties in India are not veryactive in the efforts to clean up the Ganga, and it is not very high in the generalreligious agenda. India's government has already spent over $33 million to address theoverwhelming sewage problem. However, things are looking better at the beginning of2006, as satellite images show increased water clarity in the river.

Ganges Canal

Ganges Canal was dug from Haridwar to Kanpur in later half of 19th century and a verywide network of small tributary canals were constructed from the main canal to act as

source of irrigation in the fertile plains of Western Uttar Pradesh. University of Roorkeewas established at Roorkee to train Civil Engineers who could oversee the constructionof this canal. This canal is still supplying water to thousands of villages in western uttarpradesh and water of Ganga, flowing in this canal, is in true sense the life line ofwestern Uttar Pradesh an area which played a central role in the Green revolution ofIndia and water of Ganga played a vital role in this endeavor.

NEW DELHI: The Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has asked the UnionEnvironment and Forests Ministry to furnish all details regarding delay in theimplementation of the Ganga Action Plan (GAP).

In its 26th report, on the `action taken' by the Government on their observationsrelating to the Ganga Action Plan, the PAC has said that it was not convinced by thearguments put forth by the Ministry that the delay in GAP-1 was due to the lack ofexperience of the State agencies, delay in land acquisition, litigations and court cases,contractual disputes and diversion of funds. These reasons are not such that they couldnot have been anticipated and tackled promptly and timely, the report has said.

As regards GAP-II, the Committee said that the Ministry had furnished the updatedposition regarding implementation of schemes in Bihar only. The Committee hadexpected the Ministry to furnish a comprehensive State-wise reply giving reasons forthe overall delay in GAP-II with an objective analysis of the shortcomings of the

implementing agencies.

The Committee is also distressed to note that instead of furnishing plausibleexplanation for financial mismanagement, the Ministry has merely forwarded the State
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Government's reply which also seemed unconvincing as it did not address the issues ofdiversion of funds, incorrect reporting, parking of funds and unutilised funds.

The panel has directed the Environment Ministry to take suitable remedial steps and fixresponsibility in order to avoid recurrence of such incidents.

The Parliamentary panel has also found no reason for the Ministry's reluctance inaccepting that the pollution level in the Ganga is by far the biggest contributor in

spreading water- borne diseases among those residing on its banks. It said that theMinistry had tried to divert the attention from the core issue of the need for efficientand coordinated working of different agencies related to the GAP.

December 1992

Ganga Ecology Getting Better After 8-year Effort

Treatment Plants and Turtles Lessen Pollution

Five thousand years ago the Ganga was not the river of choice in India. The Saraswatiwas the river, plentifully extolled in the Vedas, whereas the Ganga is mentioned onlyonce. But due to climatic and geological changes the Saraswati river gradually dried upto a stream, then disappeared. The Ganga assumed preeminent sacred stature and thelore of its water's purifying and healing powers waterfalled through Hindu history.The high country Ganga deep in the granite folds of the Himalayas still runs with itsemerald color of purity and cleanliness. But down in the factory-laden and urbanizedplains the Ganga runs brownish pea-green with silt and pollution: sewage, industrialwaste and corpses. To tackle the pollution, experts are farming giant snapping turtlesto eat corpses, building massive sewage treatment plants and sewage diversionsystems, and getting tough with polluting businesses. Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhibrewed up the Ganges Action Plan in 1986, pouring US$ 140 million into one of themost demanding river-cleanup projects undertaken in the world. The goal is to makethe river's 1,568-mile length visually and chemically clean enough for fearless sacredbathing and other nonpolluting river activity.Standing on the shore of year 1993, many sewage treatment plants are operational,and the Ganga Directorate claims a significant reduction in the river's bacterial count.By 1994 there are supposed to be 35 plants. It is an urgent endeavor. By the year 2028India's population is expected 10 have doubled, putting enormous pressure on thewaterways.Taking a dip at the ghats edging the Ganga at Banares - Hinduism's most sacred andoldest city - Dr. Veer Bhadra Mishra jokes that he hasn't been chomped into by a

snapping turtle yet, possibly mistaking his still alive legs for a cadaver. Mishra, aprofessor of hydrologic engineering at Banares Hindu University and a priest at one ofBenares' temples, performs his daily ablution in the Ganga dutifully, but not withoutsquirming a bit at the river's foulness. Two of his disciples wade into the water beforehim, attempting to clear away foam and debris. He doesn't drink the water. He lovesthe Ganga dearly, believes in its sanctity, but is also equally committed to its salvationfrom toxic Hades, Mishra - who received the UNEP's Global 500 award forenvironmental service - has started his own cleanup-the-cleanup campaign. Hedisputes the Ganga Directorate's figures of the river project's first-phase purity, and isdemanding a new system of pollution evaluation.Using his own water quality measurements along the 5-mile stretch of bathing ghats at

Banares, Mishra gets figures of biochemical oxygen demand (a toxicity scale) that aretwice that of the governments. He also urged the government to adopt a bacterialcount measurement. Mishra notes that people bathing in the river add to its bacterialcount. In an unwitting irony he says. "People should take showers before they bathe inthe Ganga for spiritual purification."North of Banares is another concern of Mishra's: new housing developments. Despitepolicing of the Ganga shoreline through Banares, dumping of waste still gushes in hugequantities. Banares is a city of 1 million with 1 million pilgrims bustling in each year. Of655 million gallons of waste water produced every day, only 436 million gallons aretreated.But not all of Banares' citizens or pilgrims are worried about pollution. C.L. Pandey, a

priest at the Kashi Vishvanath Temple, says a dip in the Ganga "gets rid of illness andinfection. Even the breeze from the Ganga washes sins away." But Pandey does admitthe river is dirty.And one last bit of newer technology - electric crematoriums - is helping to reduce the


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half-burnt corpse problem. They do a complete job of burning, cost 10% of the wood-fueled pyre and are becoming extremely popular despite fears they would be ignored.

NINJA TurtlesAre there Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles swashbuckling in the Ganga river or Banaressewers? Or did the Ganga pollution turn turtles into mutant ninjas? Anybody who's seenthe movie and seen giant snapping turtles swimming around Banares is going to say,"Cawabunga."

In one of the most snappy and controversial efforts to rid the Ganga of partiallycremated bodies (or whole bodies illegally dumped up stream, thousands of 3-foot longsnapping turtles have been bred to devour the problem. Out of the original US$ 140million allocated for Ganga cleanup. US$ 32 million alone have gone into turtle farmsoutside Banares. There are about 20,000 to 30,000 bodies cremated in Banares everyyear and thousands more float in from up river.

Since 1990, 24,000 turtles have been released. The assistant manager of the farm saysthey are raised on a diet of dead fish from infancy, conditioning them to go for rottenflesh in the river, but not for living bodies. When people bring a body in a bag, the

turtles charge up to the shore and sometimes drag the bag off. No bitings have beenreported. But there are still corpses daily floating on by.

From Ganga Perrier to a New Super Water

Drinking from the down river Ganga is risky business. But up at its glacial source in theHimalayas it is sparkling enough to be bottled and sold as a Hindu Perrier or Polagrinomineral water. It is. Under the Gangotri label Ganga water is bottled in plastic at 8,500feet, just down from the Gangotri gorges. It claims to be the best mineral water in theworld, and says right on the label that "consistent use cures several diseases." The

water is even distributed in the US, but it's doubtful you can order it at the FourSeasons in New York City.

While some Hindu scientists are combating Ganga pollution, others are examining theriver's baffling antiseptic properties. At the Malaria Research Center in New Delhi theGanga water from its upper reaches didn't host mosquito breeding, and preventedbreeding in any water it was added to. Water from other sacred rivers was soon filmedover with mosquito eggs.

Other research demonstrated that cholera germs die within hours of immersion inGanga water. The Ganga water has an extraordinarily high rate of oxygen retention,

allowing it to remain fresh during long storage periods. Other studies indicate thatpathological bacteria do not fare well in Ganga water. Some scientists conjecture this isdue to naturally radioactive minerals present in the water, and organisms that killgerms.

Report of the WorkshoponRole of local government in making Ganga pollution free

Eco Friends organized a one-day workshop for the corporators and government officialsof the local government (KNN) on March 22 at Massacre ghat, Kanpur. The workshopwas intentionally organised on the banks of the river so that the participantsthemselves could see the pathos of Ganga in Kanpur. The objective of the workshopwas to educate, aware and sensitise the officials of the local government about theirduties and responsibilities towards making the Ganga pollution free.

We wrote letters to them, met them personally and made repeated phone calls. Eventhe City Commissioner wrote to them on our behalf to participate in the workshop.Despite our best efforts, we could mobilise only 40 corporators to participate in theworkshop, though we had assurances from almost all the corporators (therere 110elected and 10 nominated). Besides corporators, wed Mr. V. K. Shukla from CentralPollution Control Board, Dr. Binayak Rath from Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur,Ms. Suchitra Singh, President of Rotary Club of Kanpur Greater, and Mr. S. P. Mishra,City Commissioner, Kanpur and other eminent citizens in the workshop.Representatives from State Pollution Control Board, Ganga Pollution Control Unit, UP JalNigam (GAP Executing agency), and Project Planning and Coordination Unit (GAP


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Monitoring agency) did not turn up at the workshop. Kanpur Mayor Anil Sharmainaugurated the workshop.

40 corporators including 7 women corporators of different political parties and othersattending the workshop were shocked to learn that approximately Rs.150 crore hadbeen spent to make Ganga pollution free in Kanpur alone. They did not have much ideaabout the Ganga Action Plan and the works carried out under GAP.

Mayor Anil Sharma was happy that the workshop was organised on the banks of theriver. He appreciated the efforts of Eco Friends to raise the issue of Ganga pollutionthrough various forums. Mr. Sharma explained the problems of Ganga pollution andsuggested measures to overcome these problems. He emphasized on the role ofstudents in spreading awareness amongst the people, especially their parents. He saidthat more and more programs should be organised to educate, aware and sensitisestudents towards environmental issues. He suggested that students from differentschools should be called from time to time to various ghats, especially during religiousoccasions to make the people aware about the condition of Ganga. This will have apsychological effect, he added. He also said that common man will have to comeforward to discuss and improve the condition of the Ganga or soon a day will come

when there will be no Ganga and no drinking water. He also spoke about the pollutingsocial practices like dumping of dead bodies and worship materials in the river.

Rakesh K. Jaiswal, Executive Secretary of Eco Friends informed the members that theaquatic life in the river had nearly gone dead as the river water was almost devoid ofthe dissolved oxygen content in the Kanpur stretch. The river was spreading variouskinds of diseases and it was not safe to take a dip in it. He also added that theminimum flow in the river was not being maintained which had resulted into adecreased potential of the river to dilute the pollutants and depleted quantity of theraw water available for Kanpur.

Mr. Jaiswal made the corporators aware of the purpose of the workshop and informedthe corporators about their rights and duties which had been conferred on them by the74th Constitution Amendment. He explained the status of Ganga and GAP at Kanpurand how GAP had failed miserably in its objectives. He said, GAP is neither Gangafriendly nor peoples friendly. He appealed to the Mayor and corporators to raise theissue of the minimum flow with the State and Central government.

Mr P N Rai, corporator of ward 40 and Ex. Deputy Mayor said, we are mainlyresponsible for the pollution of Ganga and therefore, it is our responsibility to makeGanga pollution free. The pollution of Ganga is nothing but the pollution of mind. Hesaid that Ganga should be cleaned on monthly basis. He also lamented the fact thatcorruption was rife in the government machinery as a result of which most schemeswere falling flat.

Kamal Shukla Baby, corporator of ward 25, believes that unless government takes strictaction against the polluters, Ganga cannot be cleaned. He added that anyone found tobe polluting Ganga by floating dead bodies, worship material etc should be penalized.He said that it was useless to think that Kanpur Nagar Nigam could help in any way toclean the Ganga as it was unable to pay even salaries to its employees. He promised tohelp Eco Friends in its efforts to stop the practice of dead body dumping into Ganga. Hesuggested that the unclaimed bodies should be taken directly to electric crematoriaand each corporator should pay Rs 21,000 from his/her fund towards this. He alsopromised to raise the issue of Ganga pollution in the meetings of KNN. He said that thecorporators would try to get the resolution passed by KNN that every month on aparticular date KNN sweepers would clean the entire stretch of Ganga in Kanpur.

Corporator Manju Shukla of ward 14 blamed tanneries for the Ganga pollution inKanpur. She demanded strict action against tanneries, which were not treating theirwaste properly. She also blamed Pollution Control Board for being lenient towards thetanneries.

Sudha Singh of Ward No 30 stated that Ganga Action Plan (GAP) was eyewash in which

millions of rupees had gone down the drain. "The people are responsible for therampant corruption and the filthy Ganga. She was of the opinion that if people raisedtheir voice against the corruption, things could change. She demanded that the GAPcorruption should be made public.


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Sushma Awasthi of ward 83 commented sarcastically on the government slogans ofIndia shining and feel good, Ganga is feeling bad and not shining at all.

V K Shukla, Scientist, CPCB informed the participants about the sources, and types ofpollution in Ganga and their impacts on the river ecology and peoples health. Hecleared the doubt of some corporators about the upstream pollution in Ganga. Paperand pulp industry, sugar factories and distilleries in the upstream sometimes releasetheir effluent in the river which leads to change in colour of the Ganga waters. He

informed that CPCB was regularly monitoring the quality of Ganga water and also thecolour change. He added that the coloured water of the Ganga was not harmful for thehuman health. Mr. Shukla commented that Kanpur Nagar Nigam had never agitated orprotested against the pollution of river Ganga. He also complained about theinefficiency of KNN in regard with solid waste management in Kanpur. He said that KNNhad failed to lift even 50 % of the waste generated in Kanpur and that was the reasonwhy Kanpur streets remained dirty most of the time. At the end he said, Ganga is ourmost precious heritage and we should not loose it at any cost, Lets wake up to thecause.

Dr Binayak Rath from IIT and a member of Citizens Monitoring Committee talked about

the quantity of water in Ganga. He demanded that the river diversion issues should bediscussed and the minimum flow must be maintained in the river.

The workshop ended on a positive note that Ganga could be cleaned if honest andsincere efforts would be made. The participants agreed to raise and discuss the issue ofGanga pollution in the assembly and regularly monitor the status of Ganga and GangaAction Plan. After the discussion the corporators along with the Mayor took a boat rideto inspect the status of Ganga. The workshop concluded with the distribution ofmementoes and Ganga Aarti.

Summary written by Rakesh Jaiswal, petitioner

Several years ago, Eco-Friends started accusing police officers of dumpinguncremated corpses in the river. The police are responsible for crematingunclaimed bodies and are supposed to get the cremation done at the localelectric crematorium. A small fee to cover the cost of electrical cremation is paidout of Police monies. In 1997, Eco-Friends alleged in a court petition that policeofficers were pocketing the money allocated for cremation and throwing thecorpses off the bridge. To a justice of the High Court of Allahabad in 1997, thePresident of Eco-Friends wrote:

Hon'ble Sir,

Almost after a fortnight since we cleaned river Ganges of Kanpur byremoving 127 deadbodies (117 human and 10 animal carcasses), morethan 100 dead bodies could be counted in the same stretch of the river.Hon'ble Supreme Court had defined the duties of Kanpur Municipality in1988 (Ganga Case II). It is the duty of Kanpur Nagar Nigam to ensure thatno dead-bodies are thrown into Ganga, but KNN [Kanpur Nagar Nigam]seems to be in a slumber. Our efforts have failed to awaken thegovernment machinery, be it police department (biggest culprit), KNN orPollution Control Boards (State and Central). Instead, a strange rivalry is

going on between Eco-Friends and police department. We're removing thepollutants and police personnel are all out to thwart our efforts and otherconcerned departments are looking the other way.

Sir, please you do something.

The Justice to whom this letter was addressed treated it as a writ petitionfor a public interest litigation and ordered that several respondents beissued notices. The Justice in effect identified a wide range of the accusedby broadening the reading of the letter. By doing so, the Justice contributedto a small but substantial trend within Indian jurisprudence in which Justices

are taking the initiative to broaden the scope of public interest cases. Asthe Justices in the Ganga Pollution cases had done, this Judge wasadmitting a letter petition from an ordinary citizen and expanding thenotion of "locus standi." This is known in legal terms as epistolary


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jurisdiction. Rejecting the assumption of personal stake or injury in thetraditional doctrine of standing, the High Court justice allowed this citizento stand for the public good and argue a case. He was allowing thisparticular citizen to seek judicial redress under Article 32 or 226 of theConstitution for a legal wrong or a legal injury caused to a person or to adeterminate class of persons who, for one reason or another, were unableto approach the court for relief. The expansion of the notion of citizenstanding has provided opportunities for concerned citizens and groups to

take cases of environmental degradation and injury to the courts. In hismemo to the court clerk, the Justice wrote:

Order July 4, 1997

This letter from Sri Rakesh Jaiswal is treated as a writ petition by way ofpublic interest litigation as it involves not only pollution of river Ganges butalso of the entire atmosphere at Kanpur. It is further obvious that thisposition may not only be true for Kanpur but may be equally true asregards the other places wherever there is a city falling on the banks ofriver Ganges. Accordingly, let the notice be issued to State of U.P.,respondent no. 1, State Pollution Control Board, U.P. Lucknow asrespondent no. 2, Central Pollution Control Board, Delhi as respondent no. 3and the concerned authority of Ganga Action Plan as respondent no. 4. Thenotices shall also be issued to Director General of Police, U.P. Lucknowtreating him to be respondent no. 5 as the letter under reference statesthat even when eco-friendly people or society try to clean Ganga by takingout the dead bodies and carcasses the police, instead of appreciating them,thwart their efforts. At this stage, notice is not being issued to themunicipal authority as it may not be a matter concerning only oneMunicipal Corporation but may involve Municipal bodies throughout thestate or even outside this state.

This kind of explicit advocacy on the part of the Justice is not uncommon inIndia, though the number of Judges practicing this kind of activism inenvironmental cases is still small. Articles 32 and 226 of the Constitutionallow a citizen to stand for the public interest and file a case in the natureof mandamus. These provisions are openings within the law for resistanceto a hegemonic structure. They are what have made the Ganga PollutionCases and many other landmark environmental cases possible andsuccessful. But as a Judge in the High Court of Karnataka writes, thisadvocacy, though initiated by the petitioner, must ultimately woo a

Justices activism for any concerted public interest litigation to proceed. TheJustice reading the Eco-Friends petition was aware of the precedents set inthe Ganga Pollution Cases, and seems to have written his court memo toparallel the strategy taken in that Supreme Court case. By broadening thereading of the original writ, he drew in a range of stakeholders whosespecial interests resided not only in Kanpur but in other riparian cities alongthe stretch of the river. Curiously however, the Justice appointed a localMuslim advocate to act as amicus curiae for Eco-Friends. This individualwas a High Court advocate with no prior experience with environmentalcases or public interest litigation.

In the High Court of Judicature at Allahabad

Date Allahabad the 22 of October 1997

Present

The Hon'ble Giridhar Malaviva,......

The Hon'ble B.K. Sharha,...............

Civil Misc. Writ Petition No. 21552 of 1997

Rakesh Kumar Jaiswal...................Petitioner


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A tough legal battle

The PIL faced a tough bureaucracy from dozens of departments. Noticeswere served to UP Govt., Director General of Police (UP), UrbanDevelopment Department (All Municipalities, Development Authorities andWater Works in UP), UP State Electricity Board, UP Jal Nigam, UP PollutionControl Board, Central Pollution Control Board, National River ConservationDirectorate (Ministry of Environment & Forests) and others. There was a

strong effort and lobby to mislead the court with false facts and figures.After a prolonged battle with affidavits and counter affidavits, the court sawthe truth after which a series of important orders were delivered by thecourt.

Some important orders passed by the High Court

The orders included the recent closure of many industries, namely 150tanneries in Kanpur, 40 Saree printing units in Varanasi, 10 carpet dyeingunits in Mirzapur etc. that did not have Primary Effluent Treatment Plants(PETP), 7 stone crushers at Hardwar, the formation of the river police in 22towns of UP along river Ganga to ensure that no dead bodies and otherpollutants are thrown into the river and prevent defecation on the banks,uninterrupted power supply to all assets like waste treatment plants,pumping stations, crematoria etc. created under Ganga Action Plan phase-I,cleaning of the Lower Ganga Canal System which is the raw water sourcefor Kanpur (having capacity of 5.5 mld ), removal of 5000 truck-loads ofchrome laden toxic tannery sludge from Jajmau area and to ensure its safedisposal, removal of illegal settlements on various ghats (river banks ofHardwar and Rishikesh towns). The court also ordered to form a " GangaFund" in order to promote public participation and contribution.

In its past orders the court made Garhwal Mandal Vikas Nigam (GMVN)party to this case. The GMVN is the premier body for the development andtourism work in the Garhwal Himalaya. This order came following anewspaper report that Gangotri Glacier (source of the Ganga river) isshrinking fast and Ganga is polluted right from the source at Gaumukh.

The court has also ordered the UP Pollution Control Board to do a monthlymonitoring of river water quality from the user's point of view unlike theprevious method of sampling water from the centre of the river. Thus, aneffort to improve the quality of water at bathing ghats and intake points

has been undertaken to ensure the safety of the users and communitiesliving along the banks and for all those directly or indirectly dependent onriver water.

The court has nominated a team of auditors with Sameer Gupta as leader(all senior Retd. Officers of Indian Audit & Accounts Services) to make aninvestigation as to how the money under the Ganga Action Plan Phase-Iwas spent. The audit team has already submitted its first report to thecourt.

Honble High Court vide its order dated: May 5-1998 had formed a High

powered committee under the Chairmanship of Chief Secretary of the UPGovt. in order to ensure compliance of various orders passed by this courtand on suggestions given by the petitioner from time to time. The highpowered committee meets every fortnight in which 10 principal secretariesof various departments, Commissioners of various Divisions, DistrictMagistrates of various towns and other top officials of UP Pollution ControlBoard, UP Jal Nigam, and representatives of Central Govt. participate. Eco-friends studies the report to verify the claims of the compliance report

ganga+pollution

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