The Supreme Court on Wednesday said it wants the NDA government to give it a “commitment” that river Ganga will be cleaned in a phased manner and said the court will keep a close watch on the executive's efforts to rejuvenate the 2,500 km-long river.
In response, the government said the Centre's efforts alone will not help the river get a second lease of life, instead the “thought to keep the Ganga clean must come from within” for the general public, and moreover, the State governments in the five Ganga river basin States - Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal – should rise above political differences and chip in to save the Ganga.
The hearing on Wednesday before a bench of Justices T.S. Thakur and R. Banumathi was after the government submitted a three-stage plan spanning 10 years to purify the river.
“If you are committing yourself for a stage-wise clean-up, we want to verify what you are doing and how you are going to do it. If you wish, we will not disturb you further for a year. But, let's say in October 2015, you should come back and tell us specifically what you did. We want you to commit to us. ” Justice Thakur told Solicitor General Ranjit Kumar, representing the government.
Mr. Kumar said a commitment would be of no avail unless the five Ganga basin States also commit. He said it is primarily the responsibility of these States to implement the clean-up. The Centre, on its part, can only make the project and give funds to the States.
``The States should also commit as I (Centre) am committing to this court to clean the Ganga. Otherwise, we will roll out the project and a babu sitting in some town will spoil our efforts,” Mr. Kumar said.
But Justice Thakur raised doubts about the Centre's political equations with the five States.
“All these five States... all of them are ruled by parties different from yours. Will they co-operate with you? You have a different combination in the Centre,” Justice Thakur asked, assuring that the court would do the necessary to aid the Centre's efforts for Ganga.
The government's three-phase Ganga clean-up plan includes a tentative Rs. 51,000 crore project by the Ministry of Urban Development to extend sewerage coverage to 118 urban habitations spread across the river bank.
Another proposal is by the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation to make all 1,649 grampanchayats located along the Ganga banks free from open defecation.
The third is to enforce zero liquid discharge from “grossly” polluting industries located across the five Ganga river basin States.
It said the long-term plan is to "restore the wholesomeness of river Ganga in terms of defining concept of ensuring Nirmal Dhara, Aviral Dhara and maintaining geological and ecological integrity of the river".
