Meeting on Draft Ganga Bill Held

The committee constituted to review the provisions of the draft National River Ganga (Rejuvenation, Protection and Management) Bill, 2017 held its meeting in New Delhi today. The meeting held under the chairmanship of Director General, NMCG Shri UP Singh  discussed various aspects of the  Bill specially the preamble, definitions and some others chapters. Shri Sanjay Kundu, Joint Secretary (PP) of the Union Water Resources Ministry, Shri Purushaindra Kaurav, Advocate General, Madhya Pradesh and Shri Arun Kumar Gupta, Advocate, Allahabad High Court attended the meeting. This committee has been constituted by the Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation to examine the salient features of the draft National River Ganga (Rejuvenation, Protection and Management) Bill, 2017.

The bill addresses the critical issues pertaining to River Ganga on its cleanliness (Nirmalta) and un-interrupted e-flow (Aviralta) and provides corresponding penalty provisions thereof. The committee also recognized the enormous challenges being faced to maintain the wholesomeness of the River perpetuated due to over stressed water demand from agricultural, domestic and industrial sectors.

It may be recalled that for the first time such legislation is being attempted in the country which has been necessitated by the huge pressures to preserve and protect River Ganga. The Bill also captures various judgments on the River Ganga including Supreme Court, various High Courts and the National Green Tribunal. The Bill is proposed to be developed as a model bill to preserve, conserve and manage different rivers and it would likely to be the role model for development of other rivers of the Country.  

Ministry of Water of Resources River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation constituted a committee under Chairmanship of Justice Giridhar Malviya in July 2016 for the preparation of Draft Act on National River Ganga for ensuring wholesomeness and Cleanliness (Nirmalta) and un-interrupted flow (Aviralta). The committee submitted the Draft National River Ganga (Rejuvenation, Protection and Management) Bill, 2017 to the Union Minister for Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation Sushri Uma Bharti on April 12, 2017.