PM MODI CHAIRS NATIONAL GANGA COUNCIL MEET
Kolkata: Prime Minister, Narendra Modi chaired the National Ganga Council meet via video conferencing in Kolkata. Modi said that the meeting of Council provides a great opportunity to discuss ways to further strengthen the Namami Gange initiative. PM Modi also spoke about ways to enhance cleanliness efforts including expanding the network of sewage treatment plants in the smaller towns.
Prime Minister reflected on the importance of the project for Rejuvenation of River Adi Ganga, infamously known as TollyNala, and a tributary of Ganga, in Kolkata. Recognizing the bad situation of the river, the project has been approved by NMCG at an estimated cost of Rs. 653.67 crore that includes construction of modern sewerage infrastructure comprising of 3 Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs) of 10 Million Litres per Day (MLD), 11.60 MLD and 3.5 MLD capacities. Prime Minister stressed that holistic preventive steps are being taken under the programme towards cleaning and rejuvenation of rivers.
The Union Minister for Jal Shakti, Gajendra Singh Shekhawat informed the Council members that this is the 2nd meeting of the National Ganga Council in pursuance of the Authority Notification Order of 2016. Besides, there were some issues flagged and shared by the Chief Ministers of the Member States of Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand and West Bengal and Dy Chief Minister of Bihar.
