The Himalayas are the source of three major Indian rivers namely the Indus, the Ganga and the Brahmaputra. Ganga drains a basin of extraordinary variation in altitude, climate, land use, flora & fauna, social and cultural life. Ganga has been a cradle of human civilization since time immemorial. Millions depend on this great river for physical and spiritual sustenance. People have immense faith in the powers of healing and regeneration of the Ganga. It is arguably the most sacred river in the world and is deeply revered by the people of India.

Union Budget 2014-15 took cognizance of the substantial amount of money spent in the conservation and improvement of the Ganga, which has a very special place in a collective consciousness of this country.  However, the efforts are not yielded desired results because of the lack of concerted efforts by all the stakeholders. Accordingly, an Integrated Ganga Conservation Mission called “Namami Gange” has been set up and a sum of Rs. 2,037 crores has been set aside for this purpose. In addition, a sum of Rs. 100 crores has been allocated for developments of ghats and beautification of river fronts at Kedarnath, Haridwar, Kanpur, Varanasi, Allahabad, Patna and Delhi.

Namami Gange approaches Ganga Rejuvenation by consolidating the existing ongoing efforts and planning for a concrete action plan for future. The interventions at Ghats and River fronts will facilitate better citizen connect and set the tone for river centric urban planning process.

The long-term vision for rejuvenation of the river would emerge from the "Ganga River Basin Management Plan” being prepared by the consortium of seven IITs for restoring wholesomeness of river Ganga in terms of defining concept of ensuring Nirmal Dhara, Aviral Dhara (clean and continuous flow of the river) and maintaining ecological and geographical integrity of the river".

The Vision for Ganga Rejuvenation constitutes restoring the wholesomeness of the river and following actions are proposed :

(i) Nirmal Dhara – unpolluted flow by

• ensuring sustainable municipal sewage management
• managing sewage from Rural Areas
• managing Industrial discharge

(ii) Aviral Dhara – continuous flow by

• enforcing River Regulatory Zones on Ganga Banks
• rational agricultural practices, efficient irrigation methods
• restoration and conservation of wetlands

(iii) Ensuring ecological rejuvenation by conservation of aquatic life and biodiversity

(iv) Promotion of Tourism and Shipping in a rational and sustainable manner

(v) Knowledge Management on Ganga through Ganga Knowledge Centre

For more details, see  http://nmcg.nic.in/index.aspx